“Hum, so you add blue cheese to green beans in order to make me eat them?” my husband eyes the bowl and twists his lips. Visions of my mother smothering broccoli in velveeta to get my brother to eat them when we were young pop into my head.

I shrug, cast a sideways glance in his direction. “I guess. Will it work?” and I raise an eyebrow as I chop carrots for the couscous.

“Uh. . . yeah!” he says, and he loads up his plate.

Just like the Lemon Herb Couscous, it just takes a few simple ingredients to take something simple to the wow level. If you’re like me, I load the kids’ plates up first with the unaltered sides, then add the indulgent ingredients for myself and my husband.

Preppin’
1 pound (about 450 grams) fresh green beans, ends snapped & cut into 1-inch (2 ½ cm) pieces
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup (2 ounces or 60 grams) crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup (5 grams) of chopped parsley

Preparin’
Cook the beans in a pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water.

Toss beans with oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Toss with blue cheese and chopped parsley.