Q and A: chestnuts, green beans, lima beans, and deformed peppers

Chestnuts

How do you use chestnuts? And do you can them as you do pecans or other nuts?

Joyce Pierce
Georgiana, Alabama

You can roast them and eat them for a snack but you can also roast, chop, and add them to any baked goods such as cookies, quick breads, and cakes. Many old-timers also used chopped chestnuts in poultry dressings. Yes, you can toast and can them like other nuts. Be sure to toast them in the oven for a longer time than smaller nuts so the insides get toasted too. — Jackie

Green beans

I canned up some green beans from my garden and they tasted bitter. We ate two pints of them and did not get sick, Would you know why they are bitter?

Chris Barr
Mathias, West Virginia

It sounds like your green beans have a condition called “flat sour.” While the beans are not poisonous, it is a type of food spoilage usually caused when foods aren’t picked and promptly canned up, even if they are held in the refrigerator. Personally, I’d dump the beans because they certainly aren’t tasty. Then next time, make sure you move right along, picking, preparing, and canning them right up. — Jackie

Lima beans and deformed peppers

I missed harvesting my Jackson Wonder Lima Beans while they were still green in their pods. They have all dried on the vine again this year. Can I still can these up as lima beans or should I use them in a chili or stew?

Jessica KoKerner
Fort Wayne, Indiana

You can now can up your limas as you would any other dry bean. Then they’ll be cooked and ready to use in any recipe.

I think you can blame the weather on the deformed peppers. Sometimes poor pollination, often weather-related, will cause not only deformed fruits but also less production. Peppers will often abort their flowers if it is too hot, making your total yield much less. Another example of “better luck next year!” Hang in there. — Jackie