Kitchen Tip: "Leather Britches" Beans

On the Menu Today~
"Leather Britches"

Dry your green beans and wax beans,
by stringing them together into what early settlers called,
"Leather Britches"

You can bet your britches...
drying extra beans is a snap!

Kitchen Tip: How to Dry Green Beans

Leather Britches aka Dried Beans

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 pounds fresh green beans

Cooking Directions

1. Step 1: Select green or wax beans that are fresh and firm. Wash beans, trim off stems, if desired. Pat the beans dry with paper towels.
2. Stringing the Beans~
3. Step 2: Hold a bean upright or lay flat on a dish towel. Thread a large darning or carpet needle with heavy-duty thread or kite thread.
4. Step 3: Insert needle and thread through the center of each bean, so both ends of the bean are loose.
5. Securing and Hanging~
6. Step 4: Secure the first bean by wrapping the thread around the bean and making a knot. Repeat step 2 until the thread is full. Secure the last bean like the first, cut the thread and tie in a knot. Hang the string of beans in a clean, dry location. Leave your "leather britches" for several months or until pods are dried and wrinkled. Once dried, store in an air tight container or upright in a glass jar.
7. Enjoy in soups, stews or chili.

Green Beans, Canning
This idea is inspired from Taste of Home Canning and Preserving
2012 Magazine