Step 1

Thinly slice the onion with a mandolin, or if you're great with a knife, try it out! They should be thin enough that you can see through them.

Step 2

Pour the nondairy milk into a bowl and whisk in the apple cider vinegar. Let the onions soak in this mixture for 10 to 15 minutes.

Step 3

In a separate mixing bowl, combine the flour with smoked paprika, sea salt, and ground black pepper.

Step 4

Heat your frying oil in large pot until it reaches 365°F.

Step 5

Using your hands, toss and coat all the onions with flour. Gently shake off any excess and set them aside in another bowl. Deep fry onions in small batches. They take approximately 2 minutes. Remove with tongs and lay out onto paper towel. Continue doing batches until all the onions are used up.

Step 6

If you have more onions than you need to top the one casserole, just bring the extras to the table as I'm sure people will be topping their entire plate of food with these delicious, crunchy onions!

Step 7

To make the sauce for the casserole, drain the cashews from the soaking water. Rinse them under fresh water and drain. Then add to a high-powered blender with fresh water and arrowroot flour. Blend until very smooth.

Step 8

Heat coconut oil in a large pan over medium heat, add mushrooms and sauté for 2 minutes.

Step 9

Add shallot and sauté for another 3 to 5 minutes.

Step 10

Add minced garlic and sauté for another minute. Then add nutmeg, onion powder, sea salt, and ground black pepper and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes.

Step 11

Stir in low-sodium vegetable stock and cashew cream in small portions, bit by bit, stirring constantly until smooth and well combined. Bring to a simmer.

Step 12

Once the sauce is simmering, add lemon juice and then green beans. Toss the beans in the sauce and cover the pan with a lid.

Step 13

Let this sit for 20 minutes stirring occasionally until the beans are cooked, but still bright green and slightly crisp.

Step 14

Remove the pan from the heat and either serve it in the pan or transfer beans and sauce to a casserole dish. Top with crispy onions. You can also put the whole casserole under the broiler for a few minutes to warm and crisp up the onion strings. Serve immediately!