Christine's "X-Treme" Beans

I love being able to make my own versions of "craveable" grocery store, restaurant or bakery items. I've whipped up marshmallow fluff, creme eggs, apple fritters and pretzels over the years, as well as a Baked Haddock and Seafood recipe my mom couldn't get out of her mind after enjoying it out east. Whenever I try to do these "copycat" style recipes, I always want to make them better - fresher ingredients, varied flavour or texture profiles and most importantly, tailored to the intended eater's tastes!

One of my co-workers (the Christine of the recipe title) brings a jar of spicy pickled green beans (adequately called The Extreme Bean) regularly to have with her lunch, and I have to admit, they're delicious! Since our garden was nice enough this year to give us not only beans, but a couple different hot peppers, I couldn't resist the urge to whip up a batch for a future Christmas gift! The quart jar makes for a gorgeous and delicious addition to any gift basket, showcasing the prime ingredients in all their glory. Now it just comes down to filling out the rest of the basket!

Shared with Gluten Free Fridays and Waste Not Want Not Wednesday

Christine's "X-Treme" Beans
Makes a 1 quart jar (including brine), 3 cups beans only
1 cup water
2 ½ tsp coarse sea salt, divided
2 tbsp sugar
1 ½ cups cider vinegar
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
2 red Hatch chiles, sliced crosswise
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced crosswise
3 cloves whole peeled garlic
1 ½ tbsp minced garlic
1 lb string beans, trimmed

1. In a small saucepan, over high heat, bring the water to a boil.
2. Add half the salt and the sugar, stirring until dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside while
3. blanching the beans.
4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium heat. Stir in the remaining salt and add the beans.
5. Cook until the beans begin to turn bright green and are just tender, about 3 to 4 minutes.
6. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water, then transfer to canning jars.
7. Add the vinegar, peppercorns, chile peppers and garlic to the sugar mixture and pour over the beans.
8. Process in a waterbath for 5 minutes.
9. Allow these to marinate for 48 hours before eating.

Amount Per Serving  
(based on 6, includes average absorption of brine ingredients but not peppers or garlic)
Calories: 23.5
Total Fat: 0.1 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 198.3 mg
Total Carbs: 5.4 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.6 g
Protein: 1.4 g