Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Dilly Beans


I have done very little canning in the past several years, since our children grew up and left home. But this year....I just had a craving for some tangy, hot and spicy Dilly Beans! I grow the skinny French filet beans every year for fresh eating, but they are not good for canning, so I this year I ordered seed and planted two rows of green beans, just for the special purpose of making some Dilly Beans.




I picked this large bowl full of PROVIDER beans yesterday. The beans are thick and meaty, some over 6 inches long. I got them planted a bit late, because of our long rainy Spring, so they are just now coming into full production. They are growing next to a double row of 'Cut and Come Again' Zinnias in my garden, which provided the pretty backdrop for this photo.





The Pinetree Garden Seeds catalog tempted me with this description of PROVIDER beans;

"This is a popular stringless bean in New England. It is reasonably early on plants that are quite compact. Size is 5-6 inches and yield is good. Disease resistance is a strong point. The flavor is really different from other green beans and difficult to describe, maybe "beanier". This our bean of choice for making Dilly Beans. There are a number of strains of Provider, all pretty good, but we think this one from an Idaho grower is the best."

So, there you have it....good for Dilly Beans, and the fact that the seed came from an Idaho grower just helped to seal the deal for me! :-)






I had enough beans from one picking to make 7 quarts of delightful Dilly Beans, and some left over to snap for supper. They are very good for fresh eating as well. My hubby even commented on how great they tasted!


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In case I have whetted your appetite, and you are now craving some Dilly Beans of your own, here is a link to get you started.





18 comments:

Catherine said...

Reading your blog is like having a long-awaited gourmet meal in a fancy restaurant, Connie. I feel completely satisfied. I don't care for Dilly Beans, but the pictures are simply divine! Thank you SO much, I've missed you desparately!! See you in a few days...5, to be exact. Excitement abounds, my dear friend.

ronandrosi.blogspot.com said...

Nothing so pretty as rows of home canned jars of something. It has always been one of the real pleasures of fall. Those are great looking beans.

Lisa said...

Wow!! From one gardner to another, I am definitely going to check out how to make Dilly beans!
Lisa

Melissa said...

It is so fun to read you again.

Just Jenn said...

Your beans are beautiful! I really wanted to make some this year but never got around to... alas... maybe next year. In the meantime I can just lick the monitor looking at yours. ;^)

Sherman Unkefer said...

I've never heard of Dilly Beans before but they sound wonderful!

lisa said...

Yummy! I like Pinetree's seeds too...and your creative use of the produce! :)

Kerri said...

Those beans are beautiful...so fresh and delicious looking! The Dilly Beans are pretty too. Canning jars full of food always look so "homey", don't they? There must be a better word...I just can't think of it...but you know what I mean, I'm sure :)
I'm going to try your marinade for the lamb kabobs. Sounds and looks delicious!
And those veggies in the bowl...just beautiful. Nothing so good as homegrown veggies!
I've hardly had time to blog this summer either, but I hope to do better with the cooler weather coming.
Thanks for visiting :)

joey said...

Awesome, dear Connie! Dilly beans were often on the table growing up. I love them yet have yet to make them. Can I have a cyber fork?

Gloria Bonde said...

Hi Connie - Your green beans look beautiful. We too are fans of green beans. I, like you, like growing the french style beans. Next year I want to find a good tasting pole bean. Any suggestions? Thanks for visiitng my blog. I am in South Dakota in the Black Hills.

MrBrownThumb said...

Great tip on how to put away a bumper crop of beans. The zinnias in the backdrop are beautiful. They look just like in the catalogs and seed packs, so full and tight.

Nutty Gnome said...

I have no idea what Dilly Beans are, but they certainly look good! :)

Thanks for popping over to my blog. It was nice to meet you - and I've enjoyed my culinary excursion round your blog too!

Priscilla @ Homegrown Delight said...

Beautiful Beans, you're amazing with gardening! I'm following your blog and looking forward to reading your posts. Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment about Idaho. I can't imagine how much more beautiful the State of Idaho could be. Perhaps someday we'll visit your area! My husband truly is making it a goal for us to move near Boise. We're praying for doors to open and waiting!

Corner Gardener Sue said...

I'm thinking I've grown those before in another garden. Where I am now, the plants get eaten down by rabbits, and I rarely get a harvest. I am going to have to invest in some rabbit fencing.

Your beans sure are pretty, both fresh, and in the jars.

Sharon said...

What beautifully canned Dilly Beans! I absolutely am going to have to do some this year. All the ladies 'round here were talking about them last year and I was too busy with the tomatoes so I froze all of the beans. This year I am more on top of things, but hadn't remembered about the beans until reading your post. Thank you! Beautiful blog too!

em said...

why, i've never had them before. the beans and the canned beans both look scrumptious!

Shazeen Zean said...

hei... ur pickle looks yummy . normaly we are only fry it with some onion or meat , this is the first time i saw it in that way , how does it test ?

Lanny said...

Nice beans, I really like Pinetree Seeds, they are great folks, calm and unpretentious doncha think? And they have great products.