ROASTED MARY WITH HOT PICKLED GREEN BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Wash and dry the tomatoes and remove the stems. Put the tomatoes, garlic, onions and jalapeno in a large glass baking dish (9 by 13-inch). Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until just starting to brown, about 45 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool and put through a food mill to remove the seeds and skin. Add the mixture to a medium bowl and puree with stick blender. Pour into a large glass container and refrigerate. When cool, add the seasonings and the pickled vegetable juice and stir well.
• For service, add a few pickled green beans to each glass, fill with ice, and add 2 ounces vodka. Pour in the prepared tomato juice, stir and serve immediately.
• *Cook's Note: Seeds-in for hot, seeds-out for medium-hot. If you cannot find a red chile, substitute 2 jalapenos. A red chile is a ripened jalapeno.
• In a small saucepan, over high heat, bring the water to a boil, then turn off the heat and add 1 teaspoon salt and the agave, stirring until dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool.
• In a glass bowl, add the vinegar, lime juice, lime slices, peppercorns, chile peppers, and whole and minced garlic. Stir in the cooled salt-agave water mixture.
• Wash and trim the green beans. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium heat. Stir in the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, then add the beans. Cook until the beans begin to turn bright green and are just tender, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Rinse immediately with cold water and put them in an ice bath for 10 minutes. Drain well.
• If you are canning, prepare the jar(s) according to processing directions, add the beans and then cover with the vinegar chile pepper mixture. Process in a canning pot for 3 minutes, remove and cool.
• You can also put them in sterilized jars and refrigerate instead of doing the canning process. Just keep under refrigeration and eat within 1 month. Whichever method suits you best, allow these to marinate for 48 hours before eating.