Trader Joes has pretty good haricots verts (frozen). I like them with slivered carrots, a bit of butter and some fresh dill.

Green beans would be good and so would wilted spinach w/garlic.

I love sautéed spinach with garlic and a balsamic reduction with a few pine nuts tossed in with steak tips and rice.

Mtn, no Trader Joes within 90 minutes :-( But i have now heard enough about them to want to go with a cooler and ice packs in my back seat. Actually, we are having a Cinco de Mayo party and i think a lot of the food may come from TJs if what everyone says about it is even half true!

Spinach! Perfect!!!!!

Green bean bundles....long beans braised in stock and served in bundles by wrapping a roasted red pepoer around four or five beans!

Thank you--- i dont know what has happened to my imagination lately, i have made both those but not in a long while and just totally forgot how perfect they are w/ this.

Something green for sure. I would think green beans or sautéed spinach would both be good choices.

Something hearty, like red cabbage and apples, or how about mashed rutabaga with nutmeg, or I too was going to suggest the haricot vert. I like to blanch them ahead of time and I toss them with olive oil and garlic to heat them before serving. Sprinkling with toasted almonds is nice too. Or my favorite with green beans is thyme. Or you can do a side salad like a wilted cucumber salad with dill. Yum.

Another option would be roasted brussel sprouts.

Haricot vert are green beans but they look slightly different (longer and thinner) and have a milder taste and a less woody texture.

Haricot vert are thinner than regular green beans.

I've heard that the frozen TJ's haricot verts are great. Looked at a bag yesterday and put it back down. I'd rather fresh.

Errant, I roasted Brussels sprouts last night. Drizzled with a little pomegranate balsamic vinegar when they came out of the oven. Delish!

I like the haricot vert from TJs also. Would prefer fresh but my grocery store doesn't carry them, I don't think.

Gail, check again. Our store carries both.

When we order beef tips out, they are always served with haricots verts. With that rich menu, I'd keep it light. I don't really doctor my veggies up anyway--I just enjoy them for their natural goodness.

Our TJ's has fresh haricots verts year round. Asparagus is just coming in to market too, which seems a little early even for us on the west coast.

Portabella mushroom/green bean casserole.

Easy roasted carrots and peppers for some color:)

Thanks, Cindy. Will check next time I'm there.

I like haricot vert (or regular green beans) steamed and then dressed with olive oil and lemon zest. Easy, green and not heavy.

I usually saute minced garlic in some olive oil and a smidge of butter, then add a splash of lemon juice and toss with my haricot vert. My Trader Joes has both fresh and frozen though I've never tried the frozen ones,

I like haricot vert (or regular green beans) steamed and then dressed with olive oil and lemon zest.

Same here.

I also love collard greens sautéed in oil with garlic, lemon or balsamic, and a sprinkle of fresh grated Parmesan if you want a twist to spinach.

Butternut squash. What else?

roasted veggies with a really really good balsamic vinegar mixed with mustard. My fav. snap peas, brussel sprouts, broccoli, green beans. all good done that way. and no oil needed!

Something with a bit of crunch for contrast? Like lightly sauteed sugar snap peas or baby bok choy.

It just got cold again here and now I am tempted by the roasted veg. Going to the store early early tomorrow to see what looks good. And I looked again at the pie recipe and it is a nutmeg hard sauce, not cinnamon as I thought. I need to get it together for this party!

I am just starting the think about our big Cinco de Mayo party just a few months from now, if the weather holds we will probably end up with more than a hundred guests so I need to begin planning and will be back here soon asking for more ideas :-)

Thank you all!

update on tonight's dinner: early this morning I decided to eschew the pears and serve a spinach salad with pine nuts, crisp crumbled bacon and a drizzle of Vidalia onion dressing. I didn't do bacon dressing because one guest eats no pork products, so having bacon pieces on everyone's salad but his solved that dilemma very nicely. I also found beautiful fresh haricots verts, which I am steaming and tossing with a squeeze of a lemon. This way I get spinach and beans, which makes me very happy :-)

Mtnrdredux, for your retro dinner I hope someone brings green bean casserole....I adore it!

If you use lemon juice instead of lemon zest on green beans, be careful to dress them at the last minute as the lemon juice can turn the color of the beans olive green instead of the pretty bright green.

Too true, crl, that's why it was DD's job to do the lemon juice at the last moment :-). I am happy to report that dinner was wildly successful and the combination of foods was just right. The beef in particular was delicious, especially with the nice La Crema pinot noir. Thanks again for all the help!