100-year recipe / Taste of Japanese mom / Instant vegetable pickles

/0 Comments/in /by

by The Yomiuri Shimbun   –   The Japan News

Japanese pickles, called tsukemono, have a long history. A description of gourds and other vegetables preserved with salt has been found on wooden plates that date from the Nara period in the eighth century.

As many as 64 different pickles, including those developed in the intervening period, were introduced in “Shiki Tsukemono Shiokagen,” a book about pickles from the Edo period (1603-1867). The book says that pickles are the most important element in meals and that they cannot be spared in any household.

Pickles were considered important as a preserved food and a side dish, and they became a basic item in Japanese cuisine together with rice and miso soup. A main dish and another side dish would be added to the combination.

Pickles changed after World War II. The amount of salt used for pickling decreased rapidly. According to Tokyo Kasei University Prof. Shigeo Miyao, a food microbiology expert, the salt content of takuan — pickled daikon — was reduced from about 12 percent 50 years ago to about 3 percent today.

A lot of salt had been used for preservation, but the situation changed. “Developments in makers’ preservation technologies, such as cold storage and packaging, meant they coped with people’s growing interest in the link between salt content and health,” Miyao said.

Homemade pickles also changed. With the Westernization of foods, traditional pickles came to be served less frequently in meals.

The recipe introduced today was published in 1997 in The Yomiuri Shimbun. After being pickled with salt for a short time, the vegetables are dressed mainly with soy sauce. The vegetables can be eaten in high quantities as the taste of myoga, Japanese ginger, stimulates the appetite.

Instant pickles became a popular vegetable cooking method with the hit “Asazuke no Moto” (Mix for instant pickles) launched by Ebara Foods Industry, Inc. in 1991.

Yasuhiko Maeda, a professor emeritus at Utsunomiya University who is an expert on food chemistry, said: “Contemporary pickles that are fresh and have vivid colors are suitable for enjoying the flavor and taste of the vegetables themselves.”

According to a survey by the Tokyo-based Better Home Association, which was conducted in 2011 with responses from about 400 women attending its cooking classes, only 10 percent of respondents said they regularly made nukazuke, pickles in salty fermented rice bran. Those who stopped making such pickles cited reasons such as, “It’s troublesome to take care of the bed of salted rice bran every day.”

Washoku has been recorded on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Fermentation expert Takeo Koizumi said: “I hope people also cherish traditional pickles that have distinctive flavors arising from lactic acid fermentation.”

Koizumi launched an organization for publicizing the merits of Japan’s fermented foods inside and outside the country in 2013. He said pickled vegetables can be used to season other dishes. For example, pickled Chinese cabbage can be mixed into fried vegetables, or into nabe stews.

“I’d like to convey to people the unknown charms of Japanese pickles,” Koizumi said.

Our recipe for instant vegetable pickles

(From the July 18, 1997, edition)

Ingredients (serves four):

2 eggplants

1 cucumber

200g cabbage

40g carrot

3 myoga Japanese ginger

8 shiso leaves

1 piece kombu kelp, 5 centimeters on a side

3g dried bonito shavings

1 tbsp white roasted sesame seeds

(any vegetables available can be combined)

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp mirin

1 tbsp vinegar

Directions:

1. Cut the kombu into thin strips with scissors and soak in a sauce made of the soy sauce, mirin and vinegar for half a day.

2. Halve eggplants lengthwise and cut into 1-centimeter-wide slices diagonally. Halve a cucumber lengthwise and cut into 7- or 8-millimeter-wide slices diagonally.

3. Cut cabbage into 2- by 5-centimeter rectangular pieces. Cut carrot into 1- by 3-centimeter pieces.

4. Slice myoga lengthwise, thinly. Remove the center stem of the shiso leaves and cut finely.

5. Mix vegetables. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of salt and 2 tablespoons of water over the vegetables and mix well. Put a light weight on them and leave for about an hour.

6. When vegetables become soft, wash with water roughly and wring dry.

7. Mix in dried bonito shavings and the sauce. Serve in a bowl, sprinkled with sesame seeds.

 

Eats: Jalapeno Bread And Butter Pickles

/0 Comments/in /by

By Aimee Misovich – Lenconnect.com

Hello! As mentioned in my previous post, I really enjoyed sampling all the goodies at Galena Canning Company’s two stores in Galena, IL. It was so hard to choose a favorite or two for purchase that I ended up not buying anything. I came very close to purchasing a jar of their jalapeno bread and butter pickles though.

I normally prefer garlic dills to the sweeter pickles, but when jalapenos are the main item in the jar, the combination of sweet and hot was a good one. When we returned home I decided to see if I could find a recipe for jalapeno bread and butter pickles online.

And I was in luck with this recipe, which comes from Elise Bauer’sSimply Recipes blog. I’m not a canner, but with Bauer’s recipe the pickled veggies are stored in a refrigerator after being made – no further processing is needed. She says they’ll last for a year or two thus stored.

(For those that do canning, she does mention that possibility at the end of the recipe.)

Minus a couple of the spices called for in the recipe and two pounds of jalapenos, I had everything for the recipe already on hand. So needless to say, I headed down to our Farmer’s Market yesterday and got those jalapenos.

Once home, according to recipe instructions, I cut off the jalapeno stems, then cut the peppers in half. I was supposed to remove the seeds and ribs next but left them in to keep the heat level up. I can handle a LOT of chili pepper fire, plus Bauer says that the bread and butter jalapenos seem to lose some of their punch after awhile.

Skipping this step made the cutting-up prep go much faster too! But I don’t advise bypassing the de-seeding if you want a mild level of heat.

Added one pound of sliced onions and the specified type of salt to the veggies – either canning, kosher or sea salt can be used. I used sea salt because that’s what I had on hand.

Here’s the cut-up jalapenos, onions and salt:

The mixture had to sit, covered, in the refrigerator four hours, then rinsed of the salt a couple of times.

Then it was into a pot along with white and apple vinegars, sugar and various spices:

You may recall earlier in the post that I had all the spices on hand except for two – star anise and a cardamon pod. Did I go to the upscale spice shop downtown to see if they had these? No, instead I looked up other jalapeno bread and butter pickle recipes online to see if they included those spices in their recipes.

They did not, so I felt comfortable in staying away from the spice shop. However, I did notice that one of the other recipes included 1 1/2 teaspoons of garlic powder, so I added that.

(Note: I later learned that typically bread and butter pickles don’t call for cinnamon and cloves, but Bauer’s recipe did, both in whole form. I have these on hand, so I put them in the pickling mixture. You may experiment with leaving these spices out if you don’t have cinnamon sticks and whole cloves in your pantry.)

Above, the jalapenos and onions are simmering in the pickling mixture. Bauer says to cook just until the jalapenos turn from bright to dull green. This step only took a few minutes. I stirred several times so that the peppers would evenly cook.

Then it was just a matter of placing the mixture into two one-quart jars:

One mayonnaise jar, one canning jar – and one cook eager to see how the pickled peppers turned out! In the recipe’s comment section, Bauer suggests waiting a day before sampling. Instead, I waited only until they cooled down, then tried one. Fantastic! And they really did taste very close to the ones I’d tasted at Galena Canning Company.

Added some of the peppers to my lunchtime sandwich earlier today:

The jalapeno bread and butter pickles turned out to be a delicious complement to a turkey and Swiss on homemade potato bread (along with Farmer’s Market lettuce and tomato plus some other yummy stuff). Hey, do I eat good or what?

And I know there’ll be plenty of good eating ahead with these spicy-sweet pickles. I am sure glad I made them – and now you can too if you go to the link above.

LEMON-CHILE GREEN BEAN PICKLES

/0 Comments/in /by

ALISON ROMAN  –   BON APPÉTIT AUGUST 2015

YIELD: Makes 2 quarts

INGREDIENTS

For the brine:

  • 1 cup distilled white vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons spices (e.g., peppercorns, coriander seeds, and/or mustard seeds)
  • 2 cups water

For the pickles:

  • 1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed
  • 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed
  • 4 chiles de árbol or jalapenos (if desired)
  • 4 smashed garlic cloves

Special equipment:

  • Two 1 quart canning jars with lids

PREPARATION

For the brine:
Bring 1 cup distilled white vinegar, 2 tablespoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons sugar, up to 2 tablespoons spices (e.g., peppercorns, coriander seeds, and/or mustard seeds), and 2 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Pour over vegetables in jars.

For the pickles:
Divide 1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed, 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed, 4 chiles de árbol or jalapenos (if desired), and 4 smashed garlic cloves between jars.

Dividing evenly, pour hot brine (see formula, left)—using 1 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes for the spice—into jars and cover. Let cool, then chill.

Do Ahead
Green beans can be pickled 2 months ahead. Keep chilled.

cooks’ note: Also try it with…Cucumbers, fennel, okra, cauliflower, jalapenos, cascabellas, chile peppers

Food Notes: ‘Pickle addict’ wins Akron contest

/0 Comments/in , /by

By Katie Byard  Beacon Journal staff writer

Yeah, yeah, yeah … I relished the assignment.

And it was a cuke contest.

Those puns are courtesy of Beacon Journal colleague Jim Mackinnon, about my task of helping to judge this year’s Pickle Making Contest, organized by the nonprofit Downtown Akron Partnership.

This was the fifth year for the contest, held in conjunction with the Friday farmers market at Lock 3 park downtown. Most contestants had dropped off their pickled this and that at the Downtown Akron Partnership office; others showed up Friday with their entries.

Delila Owens, a professor at the University of Akron, was one of the few contestants who showed up for judging, and she was one of the winners, snagging first place in the “sweet” pickle category.

The other winners were: dill pickles, Dave Clay of Richfield; hot pickles, Chris Robertson, Akron; and other pickled vegetable, Bob Epling, Green.

It was a blind judging, so Owens’ presence didn’t sway the judges.

I’ve included her recipe below. She calls her entry “Sweet and Sour Lime Pickles,” and like many refrigerator pickles, it is easy. You put cucumbers and the other ingredients into a container (Owens used a plastic one-quart container) and you let it sit in the fridge. I’m going to try it with some beans I have on hand.

Owens did let us know she was there, and made it clear that she was hoping to win. It was a low-key affair, with myself and three other judges sitting at a table under a small tent at the market, sampling pickled this and that from little plastic cups.

After the contest, Owens told me she’s a “pickle addict.” This was her first pickling contest.

At UA, Owens is an associate professor of school counseling and counselor education. Outside of work, she loves to cook and loves pickles. “I eat them daily,” she said.

The other judges were Bryan Edwards from the Akron office of the Economic and Community Development Institute; Heather Linebarger, a senior associate at accounting firm Bruner Cox; and Beth Magalski, branch manager of Citizens Bank downtown.

The next contest at Lock 3 is the Salsa Making Contest at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 4. Salsa should be turned in Sept. 1-3 at the Downtown Akron Partnership office at Greystone Hall, 103 S. High St. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Registration forms and rules are available at www.downtownakron.com/marketor by calling Anthony Long at 330-374-7676 or emailingalong@downtownakron.com.

Here’s Owens’ recipe:

Sweet and Sour

Lime Pickles

About 7 pickling cucumbers or two “giant” cucumbers

1 lime (remove peel and chunk up “for the flavor kick,” Owens says)

3 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt; more as needed

1 cup cider vinegar

1 cup water

Place chunks of lime in bottom of plastic container. Bring sugar, vinegar and water to boil in a saucepan. Let cool and pour over sliced cucumbers in container. Sprinkle salt on top. Refrigerate overnight.

Being a beet fan, my favorite pickled vegetable was David Boughton’s beets. Boughton, of Akron, sells produce from the family’s Copley Township farm each Friday at the farmers market at Lock 3. The market is open from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Fridays through Sept. 11.

Boughton said he added dried orange zest to the pickled beets recipe from the Ball canning jar folks: www.freshpreserving.com/recipes.

Cilantro Jalapeno Pesto with Lime

/0 Comments/in /by

Here’s a very simple recipe that uses jalapenos to make a sort of southwest style pesto with cilantro instead of basil.  Basil could be substituted as well and the jalapenos would give the more traditional pesto a nice kick too.

1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded

Combine the cilantro, pine nuts, olive oil, garlic, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, and Parmesan cheese in a blender; pulse until the mixture reaches a soft, paste-like consistency.

ENJOY!

Get yourself into a pickle

/0 Comments/in /by

August 5, 2015 by on Columnists, Maine Dish – ellsworthamerican.com

We Americans love our pickles; sweet pickles, sour pickles, tiny gherkins, bread and butter pickles, pickle chips and more.

The term pickle is derived from the Dutch word pekel, meaning brine. Every cuisine has its own variation of pickled vegetables. Here in North America, pickles are traditionally made from “brining” cucumbers in a mixture of vinegar, water and salt and allowing the mixture to ferment for a period of time.

Before the industrial food system became the norm, frugal homemakers and farmers would ferment crocks of cucumbers as a way to preserve the harvest and enjoy in the colder winter months. No general store, delicatessen or butcher shop was complete without a crock of pickles on the countertop, selling them to eat at once.

I like to grow cucumbers, and our family has enjoyed many varieties of pickles for years. When Deb Suran, a talented garlic farmer in Deer Isle, gifted me with 10 pounds of pickling cucumbers last summer, I decided to bring back the crock.

To find a recipe took some digging in older cookbooks and journals, as it seems that these old-fashioned pickles were actually made in barrels. My 10 pounds of cucumbers was a mere fraction of a typical barrel that weighs in at around 450 pounds!

The key to a good pickle is the acidity of the brine. Be sure to use vinegar that it is at least 5 percent acidity. White vinegar allows the herbs to be the more dominant flavor; a combination of cider and white vinegar has a more robust flavor.

Salt is another critical ingredient. Don’t use table salt, it has a non-caking agent that makes the brine cloudy. Check the labels carefully. Look for pickling salt, canning salt, kosher salt or sea salt.

As with most recipes, there is plenty of room for the cook’s creativity. Garlic scapes, cilantro tops, and hot peppers all add different flavor dimensions and levels of heat. If you can wait, the pickles are best if the cucumbers brine for at least a month, then taste test.

I’ve kept these pickles for over a year. The last time I served them they were still crisp and finger-lickin’ good.

Cheryl Wixson lives and cooks in Stonington. She welcomes food-related questions and comments at cw@cherylwixsonskitchen.com.

Old-fashioned Crock Pickles

10 lbs. pickling cucumbers

2 qts. vinegar

2 qts. water

¾ cup (150 grams) pickling salt or Maine sea salt

3-5 heads fresh dill blossoms

6 dried bay leaves

2-3 heads fresh basil blossoms

4 Tbsps. dill seed

10-12 cloves fresh garlic

Scrub the cucumbers and pack into a crock or five-gallon pail. Add the dill and basil blossoms, dill seed, fresh garlic, and bay leaves.

In a saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the salt in the water and vinegar. Pour over the cucumbers, making sure that they are completely covered. Refrigerate for about 1 month, and then taste one for flavor. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. These pickles keep extremely well, for a year or longer.

Nutritional analysis per 80 gram pickle (varies with size): 14 calories, 3 grams carbohydrates, 0 grams protein, 931 mg. sodium, 0 grams fat, 0 grams fiber.

Fermenting Revolution: The Universal Fermented Pickle Recipe

/0 Comments/in /by

By Kevin West – MotherEarthNews.com – 7/27/2015 8:57:00 AM

Making fermented pickles requires us get friendly with bacteria.

As discussed in my previous post, a pickle is nothing more than a vegetable preserved in an acidic brine. Acid is the silver bullet against botulism and also gives pickles their signature tangy taste. For quick pickles, often called vinegar pickles, the brine is acidified with vinegar.

In making fermented pickles, also called brined pickles or lacto-fermented pickles, the brine acidifies naturally, thanks to the activity of beneficial lactobacillus bacteria. The microbiology is fascinating and complex, but all you really need to know is that the beneficial lactobacillus bacteria occur naturally on the vegetables you’ll pickle, and the fermenter’s role is to encourage them to do their thing. In one sense, fermenting is akin to gardening. Gardening requires patience, diligence, and careful attention, but you don’t actually make the garden grow. Instead, you create the conditions for the garden to flourish as nature takes it course. Likewise, with fermenting, you don’t make the ferment bubble, but you do tend the microenvironment of your ferment in order to foster conditions favorable to the beneficial bacteria. And, just as the gardener takes steps to discourage weeds, you take steps to discourage undesirable microorganism such mold and yeast.

Some people prefer the unique, rich flavor of traditionally fermented pickles (kosher dills, for instance) to the sharper flavor of vinegar pickles, but to me the most significant difference between the two classes of pickles is that fermented pickles are a raw, live, pro-biotic food. (See Michael Pollan’s New York Times Magazine article here for an overview of research linking our bodies’microbiome, including gut flora, to health.) In my experience, the effect of fermented pickles on digestion is noticeable and beneficial.

Many firm vegetables—including cucumbers, summer squash, green beans, turnips, and green tomatoes—can be fermented. The only essential ingredients apart from the vegetables themselves are sea salt and bottled water.

The 6 Elements of Successful Fermenting

The six basic elements of all successful ferments are: vegetables, water, salt, aromatics, time, and care. At the bottom of this post, I’ll give you my Universal Fermenting Recipe, which is basically a simple ratio of salt to water with some added aromatics.

But the real secret to successful fermenting lies in your attention to the Six Elements, so I’ll start with each in turn.

Vegetables: As with all preserving, good results begin with good ingredients. Choose fresh, crisp, young vegetables picked at the height of the growing season. Rinse well, and trim the blossom end of cucumbers and squash to remove enzymes that can cause the pickle to soften. Vegetables can be sliced (zucchini spears), chunked (large cucumbers or squash), or left whole (green beans, small cucumbers, small green tomatoes).

As for greens: many dark leafy greens will develop an unpleasant chlorophyll taste. But when fermenting turnips I’ll sometimes add a handful of the tops, and trimmed chard stems make a good pickle.

Water: Tap water from municipal water systems has been treated with chlorine or chloramine to kill microbes. It will disrupt the beneficial bacteria you’re trying to encourage in your ferment. Always use bottled spring water instead.

Salt: Salt adds flavor, hardens the vegetables’ pectin to make pickles crunchy, and regulates bacterial growth. The brine will taste quite salty at first, but a portion of the salt is absorbed by the vegetables, and everything comes out right in the end.

Unrefined sea salt is the best choice. Salt’s weight-by-volume varies substantially with flake size, and sea salt will come closest to the recipe measurements. (Kosher salt, which is much flakier, will under-salt the brine.) Unrefined sea salt also contains trace minerals that yield a crunchier pickle.

Incidentally, there is no “right” amount of salt in a brine. The standard ratio of 5% salt by weight is a useful guideline, not a fixed rule. A less-salty brine will ferment faster, and extra salt will slow down a ferment. In summer’s heat, stick with the recipe below.

Aromatics: Be generous with aromatics, such as whole garlic cloves, sprigs of fresh dill and whole dill heads, and whole spices including black peppercorns, dill seeds, and caraway seeds. My recipe below gives suggestions, but don’t feel constrained by them. Other options include fresh horseradish, dried red chilies, and pearl onions.

Incidentally, one often sees the advice to add grape leaves or oak leaves to a ferment, the idea being that their tannins help crisp the pickle. It’s a nice touch, but not at all necessary.

Time: As mentioned, fermenting is a natural process, and it requires time to work. Warmer temperatures accelerate the process, and colder temperatures slow it down. In a comfortable room, around 70 degrees, the brine will begin to cloud in two days. Within three to four days, it will start to bubble and sour. The pickles will be half-sour in about a week, and fully sour in two weeks. At 80 degrees, the whole process might happen in a week. In a cool cellar, it might take three weeks or more. In a cold refrigerator, fermentation occurs imperceptibly over the course of months.

Care: Because of the variables inherent to each ferment (salt and temperature), the only way to judge your pickles’ process is to inspect them carefully. You can’t leave a crock or jar unattended for a week and expect good results. Instead, look at the pickles daily. Make sure they stay submerged (more on that below). Expect to find a thin film of yeast to form on the brine surface and maybe even tiny pinheads of mold. Don’t worry about these signs of life. Skim off the floaters and wipe the wall of the crock or jar if necessary. As long as you keep the micro-garden of your ferment well “weeded” by skimming daily, everything will be fine.

Once the pickles start to sour, taste daily. Once they are soured to your liking, put them in the fridge for keeping. They will last a month or longer.

Universal Fermented-Pickle Recipe

Yields about 2 quarts

2 pounds sturdy vegetables, such as Kirby cucumbers, small zucchini, green beans, baby turnips, or green tomatoes
• 6 4-inch sprigs fresh dill (including seed heads, if available)
• 6 cloves garlic, lightly crushed
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon dill seed
• 6 level tablespoons sea salt (2.25-2.5 ounces)
• 2 quarts bottled spring water

1. Wash and trim the vegetables, and pack into a one-gallon jar or crock. Tuck in the dill, garlic, and other aromatics as you go.

2. Dissolve the salt in the water, and pour over the vegetables to cover. Weight the vegetables with a plate so that they remain completely submerged. Alternatively, fill a Ziploc freezer bag with brine, and use it to submerge the vegetables. (Make extra brine using the same proportions if necessary). If using a jar, loosely close the lid. (Do not seal it so because gases produced by the ferment need to escape.) If using a crock, cover it with a plate or board to keep out unwanted visitors.

3. Store the ferment in a cool, dark place, and check daily. Skim any scum or flecks of mold. Insure that the vegetables remain submerged. The pickles will begin to sour in less than a week. You can eat them at any point in the fermenting process. Once soured to your likely, transfer the pickles to the refrigerator, and keep submerged in brine. They will keep for a month or longer.

In a real pickle

/0 Comments/in /by

By Kitsey E. Burns – kburns@civitasmedia

 

yadkinripple.com

Who doesn’t like a pickle? Ok, well, I’m sure there are some who don’t, but that’s OK, more for us! Summertime is in full swing and my cucumber vines are producing like crazy. I’m pretty excited about it because I love to can pickles. This year I am growing a regular green pickling cucumber as well as a white cucumber. Both of these varieties look great in jars.

My biggest problem is making sure to check the vines thoroughly every day, otherwise I end up with a cucumber the size of a zucchini and too large to can. I have had quite a few that were almost too big, but I hated to waste them so I sliced them into spears to can.

So far this year I have made several different kinds of pickles and at the rate my vines are producing, I’ll probably make a few more kinds before summer is over. I have made a few batches of a spicy dill pickle, grape leaf pickles and I tried a Sriracha pickle as well.

I prefer salty, sour and spicy pickles. I’m not a sweet pickle fan, but my dad does like bread and butter pickles so I will probably make a batch of those for him. The spicy dill pickle is really simple to make and the recipe is actual for a small batch so it’s great if you just have a few cucumbers from your own garden or the local farmers market. You can always increase the recipe to make a larger batch.

This year I’m also attempting to make some pickles the really old-fashioned way — in a stone crock. My mamma bought this crock at an auction a number of years ago and it has been sitting in our basement ever since. Last year, at my friend’s suggestion, I made a jar of fermented pickles. They were very different, but delicious, and fermented foods are supposed to be very good for you. I’m hoping my pickles fermented in the crock will turnout well.

Grape leaf pickles are my personal favorite, but that wasn’t always the case. I remember as a child we always canned green beans, tomatoes, stuffed peppers and pickles every summer. We normally just made dill pickles or sweet pickles, but one year Mamma wanted to make grape leaf pickles. Everything my mamma ever cooked or prepared was normally delicious, but something didn’t go well with the pickles and they were terrible. It was a family joke for a long time. A few years after that, I tried some grape leaf pickles that my cousin had made and they were delicious. Now they are one of my favorites.

Grape leaf pickles do tend to be on the salty side and not everyone likes them. My dad and fiancé both dislike them, but my great Uncle Ken and I love them so I made a special batch this year. I was particularly proud of the labels I made for my jars. I found a picture of my mamma and me when we were canning pickles a few years ago and printed that out to use as the label for the jars.

Speaking of labels, if you like to can and give your canned goods away as gifts, there are tons of free label templates you can find online to make your canned gifts look really nice. Add ribbons or other extras to make them even more special. Most people realize the time and effort it takes to can and it’s not something a lot of people do anymore so most will consider a home-canned gift a very special treat.

If you have a good pickle recipe, I’d love to try it, email me at kburns@civitasmedia.com or call me at 336-518-3049.

Small Batch Spicy Garlic Dill Pickles (recipe adapted from www.thekitchn.com)

• 2 pounds pickling cucumbers (sliced or cut into spears)

• 1 1/2 cups vinegar

• 1 1/2 cups water

• 2 tablespoons pickling salt

• 6 garlic cloves, peeled (2 per jar)

• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper per jar (3/4 teaspoons total)

• 1 teaspoon dill seed per jar (3 teaspoons total) (I have also used dill weed and added some additional fresh dill from garden and it works great.)

• 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns per jar (1 1/2 teaspoons total)

Directions: In a large saucepot, combine vinegar, water and salt. Bring to a simmer. Arrange jars on counter and dole out the spices to each. Pack the cucumber slices firmly into the jars. Pour the brine into the jar, leaving approximately ½ inch headspace. Makes three pints. Tap jars gently on countertop to dislodge any trapped air bubbles. Apply lids and let jars cool. When they’ve returned to room temperature, place jars in refrigerator. Let them sit for at least 48 hours before eating. (This recipe is intended to be for refrigerator pickles, but I prefer to heat my lids and waterbath my jars so I can store them in my canning closet. I almost always double or triple this recipe to make larger batches at a time.)

Kitsey E. Burns is a reporter for The Yadkin Ripple where she shares her musings on food, life and love. She can be reached at 336-679-2341 or on Twitter @RippleReporterK.

Jalapeños bring zing to enchiladas

/0 Comments/in /by

By Linda Gassenheimer, Tribune News Service

Published: July 21, 2015, 6:00 AM

www.columbian.com

Tortillas have become part of mainstream American cooking, and it’s no surprise. Whether made from flour or corn meal, they’re easy to use and are readily available.

Cooking the tomato sauce with whole jalapeño peppers gives it just a hint of hot spice. If you have a passion for hot peppers, cut them up and leave them in the sauce when it is served. If you don’t have jalapeño peppers, then just add a few drops of a hot pepper sauce.

Fred Tasker’s wine suggestion: Enchiladas with zingy jalapeños call for a wine with lots of sweet fruit; the high-acid goat cheese calls for a high-acid wine. One of the crianza-style Spanish riojas fits both bills.

Helpful Hints:

• A quick way to wash the cilantro is to immerse it in a bowl of water for several minutes while you prepare the other ingredients. Lift it out of the bowl and dirt and sand will be left behind. Shake dry and use.

• Jarlsburg or cheddar cheese can be substituted for Monterey Jack.

• Minced garlic can be found in the produce section of the market or in jars in the condiment section.

Countdown:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

• Make enchiladas.

• While enchiladas are in oven, make salad.

Shopping List:

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for tonight’s Dinner in Minutes.

• To buy: 1 can reduced-sodium crushed tomatoes, 1 red onion, 2 large jalapeño peppers, 1 bag washed, ready-to-eat salad ¼ pound goat cheese, 1 bottle ground cumin, 1 bottle ground coriander 1 bunch fresh cilantro, 1 package frozen diced green bell pepper, 1 package frozen corn kernels 1 package 6-inch light flour tortillas and 1 package shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese.

• Staples: Minced garlic, reduced-fat oil and vinegar dressing, salt and black peppercorns.

Goat Cheese Enchiladas

Makes 2 servings.

Serve with the Sweet Corn Salad as a side dish (recipe below).

For the sauce:

1½ cups reduced-sodium, canned crushed tomatoes

½ cup diced red onion, plus 2 tablespoons, divided use

2 large whole jalapeño peppers

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the filling:

¼ pound goat cheese

2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons minced garlic

¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 cup frozen diced green bell pepper

4 6-inch light flour tortillas

2 tablespoons shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking tray with foil.

Make the sauce: Place crushed tomatoes, ½ cup onion and whole jalapeño peppers in a medium-size saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Make the filling: Mix goat cheese, cumin, coriander, garlic, cilantro and green bell pepper together in a bowl. Divide into 4 portions. Dip the tortillas, one at a time, into the tomato sauce. Make sure they are completely covered with sauce. Remove to the baking tray and spoon one quarter of the filling into the center of each tortilla. Roll up. Spoon half the remaining sauce over the top and cover with foil. Place in the oven for 10 minutes. To serve, remove jalapeño peppers from sauce left in the pan. Place 2 enchiladas on each plate and spoon remaining sauce over the top. Sprinkle with grated cheese and remaining 2 tablespoons onions.

Per serving: 466 calories (45 percent from fat), 23.3 g fat (13.8 g saturated, 6.6 g monounsaturated), 49 mg cholesterol, 25.3 g protein, 49.2 g carbohydrates, 16.2 g fiber, 824 mg sodium.

Sweet Corn Salad

Makes 2 servings.

1 cup frozen corn kernels

4 cups washed, ready-to-eat salad

2 tablespoons reduced-fat oil and vinegar dressing

Defrost corn by placing it in a colander and running hot water through it or microwave on high 2 minutes. Add to the salad and toss with the dressing.

Per serving: 87 calories (18 percent from fat), 1.8 g fat (0.2 g saturated, 0.5 g monounsaturated), 1 mg cholesterol, 3.3 g protein, 17.9 g carbohydrates, 3.5 g fiber, 14 mg sodium.Goat Cheese Enhiladas with Jalapenos

Okra Pickled in the Mexican Fashion recipe

/0 Comments/in /by

By Judy Walker, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
Follow on Twitter

A recipe printed in 1997 originated with chef Katie Sutton ofTthe Hess Collection Winery in Napa Valley.

Okra Pickled in the Mexican Fashion

Makes 6 pints

1 pound okra

1/4 cup salt

6 cups water

3 cups cider vinegar

2 medium onions, thinly sliced

10 garlic cloves

1 cup vegetable oil

7 bay leaves

1 bunch each marjoram and thyme

2 stems oregano

Salt to taste

1 pound jalapeno peppers

1 pound carrots, thinly sliced

Pierce okra in several spots and sprinkle with the one-fourth cup salt. Cover with cold water and let stand for two hours; drain.

In a large pot, combine water, vinegar, onions, garlic, oil, bay leaves, marjoram, thyme, oregano and salt to taste. Bring to a boil; add jalapenos, carrots and okra. Return to a boil; then ladle into hot, sterilized jars to within one-eighth inch of the top. Attach sterilized lids and rings. Process in a boiling water bath for seven minutes, according to lid manufacturer’s instructions.

Store in a cool, dark place. Prepare at least one week before using; their best flavor develops in three to four weeks.