Mahoogan's Spicy Drink Sticks

Wednesday is Farmer's Market day up here in my little area of San Francisco- can't pass up $1.00 a bag for peppers, green beans and basil!  Most of the time I have no idea what I want to make, I just walk around and see what is available- this time I had a request from a fellow fan of all things spicy-drink sticks for Bloody Marys (or any other drink that a super spicy, pepper infused, pickled vegetable could go into.)  *The basil I set aside to make basil infused olive oil- I will post that one later.  I also threw a sprig into the pot while it was boiling because I love love love the smell of basil.  Anyway, I digress....  on to the drink sticks.....

MAHOOGAN'S SPICY DRINK STICKS

1 and a half pounds of green beans (I used wax, green and purple) trimmed
3 cups apple cider vinegar
2 cups water
2 tablespoons of sea salt
2 table spoons lime juice

2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns

1/2 pound of the peppers *

1 bunch chives- trimmed to fit the jar

6 cloves garlic, peeled, plus 2 tablespoons minced

Clean and trim the beans.  Add beans to a pot of boiling water and a teaspoon of salt to cook- about 5-6 minutes.

Don't they look pretty with all 3 colors... 

unfortunately the purple guys turn green when you cook them. 

Clean the peppers and throw into a pan/skillet with a lid.  On medium heat cook the peppers so that they get soft. 

Should take about 15 minutes.

 They will get burn marks on them- which is fine- perfect actually.  You can also grill them instead of cooking them in the pan- I ran out of room on the stove.  Clean and cut the chives so that they fit into the jar.  I wanted to be able to use them as a "stick" also, so I didn't chop them up.

I placed the chives ontop of the peppers in the pan to wilt them and removed them after abot 5 minutes. 

In a sauce pan combine the water, vinegar, peppercorns, garlic, lime juice, and salt. 

Bring to a rolling boil.

Now is the time to load the jars.  I layed mine down so that it was easier to layer all the stuff in there- you can do it however you wish, I just found that this was way easier.   Load each jar with the beans, peppers, and chives.  * Remove the tops and seeds of the peppers if you want them to be less spicy. 

Make sure the jars are sterilized and that they are still warm.  We will be pouring hot liquid into them in a minute and if they are cold- they will break. 

Ladle the liquid into the jars- leaving about a half inch of headspace. 

Add the lids and bands- adjust to fingertip tight.

                                      
Viola!  Let them sit for at least 2 weeks- and you have some spicy garnish for your drinks. 

Next up- Basil infused Olive Oil......