Pickled Beets

I've gotten a bunch of beets, two weeks in a row, in my CSA share. I'm not a huge fan of beets, but I do like them pickled (feel the same way about cucumbers), so here's a seasonal recipe for pickled beets:

2 bunches of beets (5-8 in each bunch), sliced into thin strips
1 head of new garlic, roughly slice each clove
1 quart white or cider vinegar
1/2 quart sugar
1 heaping tsp. salt
1 tbsp. pickling spices
Small handful of chopped dill, if you like it

Fill 2 sterilized (read: just out of a HOT dishwasher) quart-sized mason jars with sliced beets and garlic. Bring vinegar, salt, spices, and dill to a boil in a pan. Remove from heat and add sugar. Then, pour it through a cheese cloth (read: a thin dish towel if you're not Martha freaking Stewart) into the jars of beets. Now, at this point, you can just throw a lid on the jars and keep them in your fridge if you'll eat them within a few weeks (but wait 24 hours before cracking them open).

OR you could seal them:
-Get some NEW lids and rings--you can reuse lids for fridge pickles, but new is essential for making a seal.
-Boil a giant pot of water, dunk the lids and rings in it for a minute or so, then put them on your full pickle jars.
-Then submerge the jars in the boiling water for 10 full minutes.
-Take them out with canning tongs (or regular tongs, carefully), and let them sit undisturbed for 24 hours. You might hear them pop as they form seals. You should NOT be able to get the lids off by hand, without a can opener.
Now, you can eat them immediately or store them in your pantry for up to a year. I would recommend doubling or tripling the recipe if you plan to seal the jars. It's not really worth the trouble unless you make a decent sized batch.

(Hopefully my lazy ass will upload some pictures of these beautiful pickles soon).

Spring Salads

This blog would really be better with more pictures. I promise I'm on it. Really.


I got the first share of my CSA (more on CSAs later) last week, and it was overflowing with greens. It included (among many things) a super-sized bag of varied lettuces. I am not very good at using up greens before they wilt, so I devised a plan.

I washed all the lettuce at once, let it dry on towel, and tore it into bite-sized pieces. Then I divided it all among 5 of my lovely glass Pyrex tupperware containers. I added some sugar snap peas, chopped in half, some chopped garlic scapes, and some grated farmhouse cheddar (all from the CSA) to each container. I added sliced strawberries to just two of them (because I ran out), and put all the containers back in the fridge.

Every morning this week, I grabbed one of the containers from the fridge, and brought it to work for lunch. I dressed them with some homemade strawberry balsamic dressing* I already had in the fridge.

I had the interesting experience of sitting with a co-worker on Wednesday who was eating some kind of reduced-fat microwaveable plastic-wrapped food-like mush because she is "eating healthy" to try and "lose weight." I was quietly grateful that all I'm doing is "eating real food" to try and "enjoy meals."




*Strawberry Balsamic Dressing

1 spoonful of last season's strawberry jam
1 part balsamic vinegar
2 parts olive oil
salt and pepper
a little dill if you want to go crazy

Put it all in a small mason jar (really great to use the last bit of jam in the jam jar). Shake vigorously.