Marinated Green Beans with Extra Garlic & Peppers

A few years ago, we took a fabulous tour of Italy,

starting in Rome with an audience

with the Polish Pope, John Paul II

(us + 200 others!)

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(my husband is of Polish heritage,

so this was extra special to him)

then going all the way down

the west side of the country,

we went past Anzio beach

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where his older brother had landed during WWII.

Whizzing past Naples, we toured the ruins of Pompei,

(yes, we saw the *dirty pictures* on the walls)

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We went to the beautiful Almafi coast,

and enjoyed Limoncello in Capri,

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saw the BLUE Grotto

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then motored back up to Florence

where we walked what felt like

every single mile of that beautiful city.

We also stayed in Venice, Italy

where we saw St. Marks Cathedral

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and where I purchased some beautiful cutwork linens

(you can see some of them HERE)

right there, in the square.

I'm still trying to replicate their yummy pizza we ate for lunch!

Final stop was the European fashion capital of Milan

where we saw the ornate Duomo cathedral

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The construction began in 1296 &

it is STILL the largest brick dome ever constructed.

We saw the world renowned La Scala opera house, too.

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Throughout the trip, we enjoyed many WONDERFUL meals

but while driving between cities on the Autostrada,

we had lunch, cafeteria style,

at their rest stops where they

served the most delicious, room temperature

marinated green beans.

I have attempted, for years,

to duplicate that recipe,

to no avail but

when I tried this one by Marcella Hazen

featured at Mary's blog,

One Perfect Bite

I knew I had found it!

Thank you, Mary!

I had been mistakenly using either red wine or balsamic

vinegar in my attempts. It needed the much milder

touch of white wine or champagne vinegar to

duplicate the flavors of Italy.

Occasionally, I add red, orange or yellow peppers

to the recipe for a spark of color.

Marinated Green Beans with Extra Garlic & Peppers Marinated Green Beans with Garlic & Peppers ~ adapted from Marcella Hazen & One Perfect Bite 1 pound fresh green beans 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil 1 teaspoon fresh oregano 5 tablespoons white wine vinegar (Do NOT substitute red or balsamic!) 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion 2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed ~we LOVE garlic so feel free to use more if you do, too~ 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil Salt to taste Freshly ground pepper to taste red, orange or yellow pepper strips (optional) Mix parsley, basil, oregano, onion, garlic & vinegar in a bowl with a tight fitting lid. Let them marinate for 30 minutes. Snap off ends of green beans, rinse & drop them into boiling salt water. Drain beans while still very firm. Add warm green beans to bowl with vinegar & herbs, then toss in the peppers now, too, if using them. Marinate for at least 1 hour but you can leave them in as much as 5-6 hours. Shake the bowl occasionally to make sure everything gets coated. Serve beans at room temperature, adding olive oil and salt and pepper to taste just before serving. Yield: 6 servings.

Printable Recipe HERE.

I'll be partying with Michael Lee at

Designs by Gollum

for her

Foodie Friday meme.

Won't you come join in the fun?

Thanks for stopping by The Gazebo House.

I sure wish we had digital cameras when we took that tour.

All my photos are stuck in albums so I had to mooch some

from the web. I have given credit to each...its the

proper thing to do when you "borrow" others photos!

Oh & since this post fits into the parameters of Donna's

Memory Lane Monday party

at Brynwood Needleworks

I'll be linking up with her, too.