Green Bean Hot Dish and How it Was Eaten

I didn't take a picture, but hopefully I can describe with words. I happen to love fresh green beans. We had them a couple of days ago...just plain with a little salt and butter on them. I had several raw beans left over and didn't want them the same way. So, this morning I fried a couple strips of bacon for Joe....knowing that I would use the bacon fat for my dinner. I grew up during the depression and my mom and grandma stretched a meal like no other. Sometimes we had a mixture of vegetables and no meat. They  would keep a little cup of bacon fat on the stove, in the back in the middle of the burners. She added to this cup every time she fried some bacon.  This green bean recipe is hers, but when I was first married, I found that my mother in law made this too, and her mother before her. It seems like it is a southern recipe, but my mom wasn't southern.
Here's the recipe....
Green bean hot dish
Fry 3 strips of bacon and save the grease.

Preparing the green beans..
Use fresh green beans and cut them in thirds. Cook them for a short time in salted boiling water. As soon as they are just starting to get tender, drain them.

Preparing the potatoes..
I used cut up red potatoes, but her recipe calls for new potatoes.
Cut the potatoes in bite sized chunks and set aside for a little bit.

Fry a chopped onion in the bacon fat until translucent. When this is done...add the potatoes and green beans. Toss them until they are coated with the bacon fat. Season with lots of pepper and some salt. Add a cup of hot water. Mix this well and cover the pan.

Simmer this until the beans wilt and the potatoes are softened. The beans will glisten and the potatoes will be a little browned from the bacon fat. Cook until most of the water is gone...then crumble the strips of bacon on top and serve.

OK....I went to the trouble of preparing just like the recipe and serving it in a bowl at our table. We did have some meat with it and Joe had an ear of sweet corn. I'll have to tell you what's funny about this meal. After cooking everything and tossing it all together, Joe makes separate piles of potatoes and green beans on his plate. He mashes the potatoes and puts gravy from the meat on top. I feel that he missed the whole idea of this meal...I could have just made green beans and mashed potatoes...Go figure.

The first thing I noticed about Joe 12 yrs ago, before we married, was that  had very neat eating habits. We ordered burgers and fries. He was very particular about how his burger was constructed and he stacked his fries very neatly on the other side of his plate. I even mentioned it to him a little later, when I knew him better. He reminded me of that dinner today, when I complained about how he was eating this meal.

I grew up with a Dad who was in the 2nd World War. When I was a fuss budget about my food touching on my plate...he would say, "You better not go in the Army...they pile everything on top of each other with the dessert on the very top." Then he would chuckle at my reaction.

I guess Joe's habit isn't so bad....but I wish he had tasted the good flavor in the cubed potatoes :)
Balisha