Two Great Things are Just About to Happen

COME AND LISTEN (and eat fermented food)! On Thursday July 19th, one week from today,  Sandor Katz is coming to Chattanooga to talk about his new book The Art of Fermentation.  Afterwards, there will be fermentation sampling and mingling.  More information here: slowfoodchattanooga.com

COME AND SEE (and buy fun, fancy, and functional stuff)!  On Saturday July 21st, Artifact will be hosting a Wearable Show, as well as an open-studio.  I will be contributing a small amount of my own wearables.  There will be iced tea, and piles of summery clothes and accessories, as well as prints, paintings, and pots.  More information here: http://teamartifact.com/

Pickling Right Along

Also adapted from Canning For a New Generation come the not-too-sweet bread and butter zucchini pickles.  She uses ginger in her recipe, but I didn't have any.  It sounds super good, but I couldn't wait so I did without.  I also added a little more sugar (but not much) and a little less turmeric (because I ran out).   One jar didn't seal, so, unlike the turnips, I can assure you with all certainty that these pickles are delicious.  They go perfectly with a little rye bread and Dancing Fern cheese.  And, they're made from zucchini.

Bread and Butter Zucchini Pickles

makes about 6 pints

takes 2 days, or one very long day (8 hr-overnight ice bath)

• 4 pounds zucchini, washed and beheaded
• 1 pound sweet onions, peeled and halved
• 1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon kosher or pickling salt 
• 2 Tablespoons whole coriander seeds
• 1 Tablespoon whole yellow mustard seed
• 2 teaspoons crushed pepper (or 1 teaspoon minced dried cayenne)
• 6 cups cider vinegar (5% acidity)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• (6 rounds fresh ginger if you have it)

Cut zucchini into 1/4 inch rounds.  Thinly slice onions.  Place together in a large bowl and toss with 1/4 cup of salt.  Cover with a healthy layer of ice cubes and let sit in the refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight.  Pull out any unmelted ice cubes, drain, rinse well, and drain again.  Toss with coriander seed and pepper flakes, set aside.  

Sterilize clean jars in a canning pot of boiling water, and let jars sit in warm water while preparing the vinegar.

Place new jar lids in a heat-proof bowl and pour boiling water from the pot over them- also leave in water til needed.

Combine vinegar, water, sugar, turmeric, and 1 T salt in a pot.  Bring to a boil.  Drain the jars and gently stuff the zucchini in, being sure not to pack too tightly.  If using ginger, throw a slice in the bottom of each jar first.  Carefully ladle or pour vinegar into each jar, leaving about 1/2 inch headspace.  Run a clean chopstick around the side of each jar to remove large air bubbles- the zucchini tend to fold up against the sides and trap air in them.  Screw the lids on well, but not too well (til "finger tight"), and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.  Place on a dry towel and don't move jars for 12 hours.  Check to make sure all are sealed (buttons on top will be popped down), and store in a cool dry place.  They can be eaten after 3 weeks, although I tried my unsealed jar after 1 week and they were still amazing.

O, Just Some More Turnips

Mike didn't use all the turnips for kimchi- mostly because we were worried about all-turnip kimchi (unfounded fear), so I've put some up in vinegar.  It's too early to say how they rival the turnip kimchi- but they smelled good, and look great in my hoard.

This has been adapted from Canning For a New Generation by Liana Krissoff- a book that is as good as its name.

Cumin and Paprika Pickled Turnips

about 4 pints

takes 2 days to make, as turnips have to brine for at least 8 hrs (for those of you, like me, who don't read recipes through before you begin chopping)

• 3 pounds of turnips (I used purple top and hakuri), washed, peeled, and cut into 1/2 inch-wide sticks
• 1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon kosher or pickling salt
• juice of 1 organic lemon, plus chopped rind of same lemon
• 3 teaspoons ground cumin (or 4 t whole cumin seed)
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1/2 inch of dried cayenne (I've had mine hanging for 2 years, and 1/2-an-inch-at-a-time is not the quickest way to work through them)
• 3 cups cider vinegar, plus 1 cup water

Put turnips in a large bowl.  Dissolve the 1/4 cup salt in 1 quart of water and pour over turnips.  Place a plate on top to keep all the turnips submerged and brine at room temperature for 8-10 hours, or overnight.  Drain and rinse the turnips, and then toss with spices and lemon juice and rind.

Sterilize 4 pint jars in a canning pot of boiling water.  Leave jars in hot water while you heat the vinegar, 1 cup of water, and the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt in a medium saucepan (as I write this I am becoming increasingly worried that I added 1 tablespoon of salt instead, and that these pickles might just make better shelf ornaments than taco topping).  Bring vinegar just to a boil.

Place new jar lids in a heat-proof bowl, and pour boiling water over them- either from a kettle, or the canning pot.*  Sterilize tongs, a jar lifter, your canning funnel, and a ladle (unless you've already used it to ladle water on the lids) in the boiling canning pot.  You may need to remove the jars first: lift them out with tongs, pouring all the hot water back into the pot.

Working rather quickly, loosely pack the turnips into the jars, to the bottom of the screw-top point (about 3/4 inch from the top).  Ladle or pour the vinegar though a canning funnel over the turnips, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.   Wipe jar rims with a clean damp paper towel, if needed.  Poke a clean chopstick down around the sides of each jar to remove any large air bubbles. Place lids on top of jars, and tighten lightly.  Return jars to pot make sure they are covered by at least 1 inch of water, bring back to a boil, cover pot, and boil (or 'process') for 15 minutes.  Lift jars from pot and place on a wooden cutting board or a dish towel.  Do not disturb for 12 hours.  Put any unsealed jars (the ones whose button on the lid didn't pop down) into the fridge, and enjoy after about 3 weeks.   Place the sealed, labeled jars in a cool, dry, dark place and admire them from time-to-time.

*I used to boil the lids for about 5 minutes, but Canning For a New Generation advises against this, as it can break down the seal on the lid and make it less, or not, effective.