Open Pickling

Friday last SmittenKitchen offered...

Seeing that it is a whole eleven days into aught-eight, I’m going to stagger a guess that you’re sick of carrot sticks by now. But I don’t want you to feel bad about it. We all hit that wall between our ambition and the reality that being good all of the time is no fun from time to time.

Truer words were never spoken... carrots sticks get a little ... passe. So my interest was piqued by the prospect of ... pickled carrot sticks.

Whoa! Stop the presses, rewrite the headlines... pickled carrot sticks?!? Sheeeeesh, Papa, get a life or something.

Ok, now that everyone is done laughing and guffawing... the simple recipe included with this post was just the key I needed to unlock a part of the culinary mystique that has alluded me for years. The simple pickled vegetable. They don't need to be 'Grandma's Extra Special Secret Recipe' or politically correct Kosher pickles. No, they just need to be crisp, bright, piquant pickled veggies.

Be warned, however, the brine is so good it’s going to get you thinking “what can I pickle next?” Alex has been on the pickle prowl for a couple days now and I see him eying the leeks in the fridge, the beans in the pantry.

Truer words were never spoken, again... after I sliced up my carrot sticks I spied the head of cauliflower - it just cried out, begged to be pickled. Mmmmmm, little white cauliflower florets in contrast to the bright orange carrots sticks.

If you were me, you would not be able to keep your tongs out of the jar. I had one of those “oh, let me try one and see how they came out” moments before I went to work Thursday morning. Then I tried another one. And another. Um, I had pickled carrot sticks for breakfast–I am gross. But these are not.

My pleasant surprise came early Sunday morning. Nervously I slipped one skinny carrot stick out of the bowl of brine and ... Yes! Light, bright and slightly tangy. I think I will have another.