I seem to always think of green beans around Thanksgiving time. Among my traditional variations are the wild mushroom green bean casserole, saute beans with slivered almonds and garlicky green beans.

Other than tradition, there’s nothing holding us back in bringing these to a Fourth of July celebration. This year, I was inspired by an appetizer at one of my favorite Houston establishments, Natachees’ Supper N’ Punch, where they serve a version of these with a ranch sauce.

These make a lovely appetizer, coupled with your favorite dipping sauce, or try mine.

• 1 pound green beans, ends trimmed
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup beer
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Start by washing the beans throughly. Aren’t they pretty?

Freshly washed brightly colored green beans

Bring 4 cups of water to boil and salt with salt. Blanch for a couple of minutes.

Blanching green beans in salted water

Stop the cooking process by shocking the beans in ice water. Once cool, set aside and drain fully.

To stop the cooking process, place the green beans immediately in ice water for a few minutes, the drain and dry fully

While cooling, prepare the batter. Mix the flour spices and beer in with a whisk.

It's ok if the beer foams a bit. For this recipe, I used Stella Artois

Hand coat each green bean.

Hand coat each bean separately

And fry in oil at 375 degrees until golden brown.

Deep fry until the batter is golden brown

Let them cool slightly, but serve them immediately.

Allow them to cool for a bit, but serve immediately

If you’d like a dipping sauce, try this cool and spicy ranch.

1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise

3 tablespoons vegan sour cream

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Black pepper to taste

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1/2 teaspoon your favorite hot sauce (I use Lime Chili Cholula)

Mix all and serve.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauces, and try my cool and spicy ranch

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