City Girl's Canning Cookbook- Cowboy Candy

This is a post from City Girl Country Life, centering around the ever popular Cowboy Candy. The blog City Girl Country Life is heading into retirement so many of the recipes originally shared there will make an appearance here over the next several months. This story was originally published in February, 2014.

Finding myself with a nice amount of fresh jalapenos and a sorely lacking supply of home canned goodies these days, I decided to drag out the canner again and make up a couple of my favorite recipes. This one made the list. I hope you enjoy!


Canners everywhere have some recipes they are especially attached to. And they have recipes they love to share. Last summer a canning buddy shared a recipe with me and I LOVE it.

Canners always talk about Cowboy Candy. As a fan of hot peppers and hot pepper jellies, this recipe intrigued me and I knew I had to make it. I wish I could have gotten a mix of red and green jalapenos but I didn't this time around. I've used Cowboy Candy to add a sweet hot element to other dishes- stir fries, sauces (the syrup in delicious), as a snack with cream cheese like pepper jellies, and as an accompaniment to chili even. It's delicious on sandwiches and pizza as well. I hope you will give it a shot. It's unlike any commercially canned peppers I have ever tried.

Cowboy Candy

• 3 lb firm, fresh jalapeno peppers
• 2 cups cider vinegar
• 6 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp celery seed
• 3 tsp granulated garlic (I had to sub 2 cloves super minced fresh)
• 1 tsp ground cayenne pepper

Wearing gloves, remove stem end from peppers and slice into uniform 1/4 inch thick slices. Set aside.

In a large pot bring remaining ingredients to boil. Reduce heat, simmer five minutes, then add pepper slices and simmer 4 more minutes. Using a slotted spoon, pack peppers into hot sterile canning jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Bring heat back up under the pot and boil the syrup at a full rolling boil for 6 minutes.

Ladle syrup over peppers. Remove air bubbles, fix lids and rims and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool, age peppers for at least two weeks.

*Note- if you want to skip the canning step, just divide the peppers and syrup among jars or freezer containers and store in the fridge. They are a pickled product so they will last a while.

Canning Cookbook- Triple Cherry Jam

This is a post from City Girl Country Life, centering around canning and a sad loss at an Iowa aquaponics farm. The blog City Girl Country Life is heading into retirement so many of the recipes originally shared there will make an appearance here over the next several months. Since I have had my love of canning reignited this week, it seemed appropriate to bring back a canning recipe that's easy and delicious- great for beginners. This story was originally published in June, 2015.

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The other night the Little Lake House, and a whole lot of others in Iowa, were rocked by storm after storm after storm. All day long, starting in the early morning, the rain and thunder and lightning just kept coming. Tornado sirens sounded in the nearby town of Dexter and like it always does, the satellite tv signal was knocked out by the storm. Even at nearly 3 a.m. the storm raged on. In the morning much of Iowa awoke to flooded roads, rivers bursting out of their banks, basements turned into indoor pools, and storm debris all over.

photo courtesy of Chris Winget

One casualty of the storm was a cherry tree at the aquaponics farm a few miles away. Checking my email this morning I was surprised to see Cherries!! in the subject line. I had no idea they even had fruit trees! The tree's misfortune was my good luck, because I scored a big bag of fresh sour cherries for a mere $3.00. While chatting with the farm owner, he hinted that this is the perfect amount of cherries for a pie. Good idea, although I already had plans for these guys.

It's getting to be canning season around here again. The pile of empty jars in the storage room is growing and the cupboards are starting to look a little bit like Old Mother Hubbard's cupboards. The tomatoes and tomato jam are long gone. So is the salsa, and many of the jams. A few odd pickles remain, a few pints of salsa verde, several jars of green beans, and a decent stash of apple butter. The cherry jam I made before has been gone for months and I've been waiting patiently for cherry season so I can replenish my stash. As you can imagine, I wasn't too heartbroken to hear about the rush sale on cherries at the farm (although losing the tree means there will be a lot fewer cherries next year) because I got a great head start on pitting cherries tonight. Those have been safely stashed in the fridge, and tomorrow I'll grab some sweet juicy Bing cherries, and my very favorite, Rainier cherries, to add to the pot. They will add a new dimension of cherry deliciousness to my jam and beautiful color too.

photo courtesy of Chris Winget

Triple Cherry Jam

2 cups chopped pitted sour cherries

1 cup pitted chopped Bing cherries

1 cup pitted chopped Rainier cherries

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 box powdered pectin

5 cups sugar

Pit and chop the cherries. I like to use a food processor to chop the cherries. Just add the pitted cherries to the workbowl and pulse several times to desired size. I like to keep some larger chunks of fruit in the jam so I only pulse two or three times. Measure 4 cups fruit. Place in large heavy stockpot with the lemon juice and pectin.

Sour cherries, pitted and ready to go.

Bing cherries and Rainier cherries

Measure the sugar and set aside.

Place the stockpot over medium high heat and bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Add the sugar all at once. Return to boil, stirring the entire time, and boil for one minute. Remove from heat and skim foam.

Ladle the hot jam into prepared canning jars to 1/4 inch headspace. Fix lids and rings. Process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes. Let jars cool undisturbed overnight before removing the rings and checking seals.

I had enough cherries to make a double batch BUT you should never double a batch of jam or jelly. You might end up with a jam that doesn't set properly. Make two batches instead. You don't even have to wash the stockpot between batches, just add the fruit and cook the next batch. Each batch makes about 8 8-oz jelly jars.

Next up on the agenda? Popping an English muffin in the toaster, slathering that bad boy with real butter and adding a nice big spoonful of this luscious cherry jam. It's also really good served with a creamy cheese as part of a cheese plate, spooned onto a slice of cheesecake or even as part of the PB&J.

NOTE: This recipe has not been tested by the NCHFP. If you are not comfortable canning untested recipes, please do not use this one. Having said that, cherry jam is a basic recipe and this one differs from tested recipes only in the fact that there is more than one type of cherry in the mixture. Acidity is not affected.

Odds and ends from the garden? Pickle them!

This is a post from City Girl Country Life, centering around fresh veggies and fridge pickles. The blog City Girl Country Life is heading into retirement so many of the recipes originally shared there will make an appearance here over the next several months. This story was originally published in May, 2015.

This recipe is a great way to use up the last garden stragglers too- you can use any vegetable you like in this recipe. Some you may want to blanch, others can go straight into the brine. 

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Ohhhhhh pickles!!!

When I was first getting into home canning in a big way, pickles were among the first foods I learned to make. Spicy dills, bread and butter pickles- my favorite, pickled carrots, pickled onions, quick asparagus pickles, relishes of all kinds. Dills. So many dills. Chunks, slices, whole, spears. Blue ribbon winning pickles. 

There are two types of pickles- brined pickles and fermented pickles. Fermented pickles, like sauerkraut, get their sour flavor from being fermented in a crock in a salty water mixture. I prefer to make brined pickles- pickles that get their sour flavor from a vinegar brine. It's quicker and since I have fur kids, I don't want to have crocks of fermenting foods sitting around. I prefer my pickles with no fur.

Adding spices to the brine changes the flavor of the pickles. Dill, of course, gives a tremendously green and fresh flavor to pickles, and garlic, mustard seed, black peppercorns and even hot peppers bring varying levels of heat and spiciness to the brine. I got the bright idea to add ghost peppers to jars of pickles one time- wow!! Talk about spicy!! 

Pickling is also a great way to preserve those beautiful summer veggies and a great addition to your relish tray for parties and holidays. I will pickle pretty much everything. It's easy to whip up a quick brine, add some herbs and aromatics and pour over a colorful mix of veggies. You don't even have to "can" the pickles- fridge pickles, also known as quick pickles, go right in the fridge and last for weeks. 

If you have a crinkle cutter you can make gorgeous slices of
bright carrots. You can also purchase crinkle cut "chips"

What kind of veggies should you pickle? Whatever you like! That's the great thing about pickles- the brine adds the necessary acidity to make your vegetables safe for canning at home, and using a colorful combo makes the jars beautiful and interesting. 

Isn't this gorgeous? I just couldn't say no

Strolling through the produce section at the big grocery store in the city I had so many choices to make. I found gorgeous little shishito peppers back on the shelf so I had to grab a couple handfuls to use in this pickle recipe. There was a fabulous display of cauliflower and broccoli set up including the most beautiful purple cauliflower. Naturally I chose one of those. I considered baby carrots but instead went with "carrot chips"- slices of large carrots cut with a wavy blade. Those are going to look great in the jars. Fresh green beans and red onion round out the veggies for this batch.

Shishito peppers are sweet with an occasional odd spicy one

I have included directions for processing the pickles in a boiling water bath canner for shelf stability if you want to go that route. I did not. These are so popular around here that they go straight into the fridge and get eaten up pretty quickly. I personally prefer fridge pickles over processed pickles- the veggies stay crisper and brighter.

Kicked Up Veggie Pickles

1 head cauliflower

1 pound fresh green beans, ends trimmed

1 lb baby carrots (or regular carrots, peeled and sliced)

2 ears fresh corn

2 onions
3 bell peppers or other peppers of your choice*

3 cups apple cider vinegar

3 cups water

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon kosher salt

yellow mustard seeds

garlic cloves

peppercorns

dried cayenne peppers*

*Instead of bell peppers I bought a couple handfuls of shishito peppers and used them whole. If you use a spicier pepper you can omit the cayenne pepper. I used dried Serrano chilies instead of the cayenne since I have so many.

Cut the cauliflower into good sized florets. You need about 3 cups. Cut the bell peppers into strips. I used whole shishito peppers so I just cut slits in them to allow the brine to get inside the peppers. Clean the corn with a veggie brush to remove all the silk, then cut it into one inch chunks, then cut into halves. Cut the onions into wedges. 

Fresh corn on the cob makes an interesting addition

Bring a stockpot of water to boil. Add the veggies and boil for one minute. Remove from water and into a large bowl. DO NOT use an ice bath!!

Bright veggies make beautiful jars of pickles

Meanwhile, in another pot, combine the water, vinegar and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the salt (or you can add a teaspoon of salt to each jar). 

Pack the hot vegetables into hot canning jars. Add a teaspoon of mustard seed, several peppercorns and 2-4 cloves of garlic (smash them a little to release the flavor) and a cayenne pepper (or half) to each jar. Pour the hot brine over to 1/2 inch headspace. Fix the lids and rings, place in boiling water bath canner. Process for 10 minutes. Makes 6 to 8 pints.

Make it easy on yourself- use the wide mouth pints for this pickle recipe. The brine is great for all different kinds of pickles so use your imagination. The brine acts as a preservative and the heat of processing in the boiling water bath seals the jars. Remember, you can also make the pickles and just pop them in the fridge instead of processing in the canner. I chose to make them a quick pickles this time because of the vibrant color of the cauliflower- I wanted to preserve that stunning purple as much as possible.

NOTE: This recipe has not been tested by the NCHFP. If you are not comfortable canning untested recipes, please do not use this one.

It's A Pickle Party In Puyallup

I'd have to say that honestly I am pretty content living in Iowa. There is a lot of cool stuff here. Incredible pork. The world famous state fair. All the corn you could ever want. One hundred wineries and growing, plus an impressive collection of breweries. Gourmet restaurants and foodie events. Templeton Rye. Apple orchards and pumpkin patches. Yes, I would say that this is my happy place. Recently I heard about a very unique business in Washington state that spoke to my heart and my love of home canning and quick pickling. How about a cucumber farm that not only sells cucumbers grown on the premises but offers pickling parties? I am sooo there !!! Well....I wish anyway.

So what is this farm called? Where is it? What is this all about? Tamara Harden, who lives in Puyallup, Washington, shared this story with me, about Duris Cucumber Farm, a very unique business that's part farm, part store and part pickle factory in Puyallup. I visited the company's website and learned all about the history of this business and how it all started back in the mid-50s when Hazel Duris asked her husband Al to help her get a garden started. She wanted to grow cucumbers for pickles, as well as other fresh vegetables. Like so many gardeners experience, Hazel soon had cucumbers in abundance and began selling her extra produce. Little by little their garden plot grew into a farm, now operated by their children. The farm's chief crop is pickling cukes and with that, everything you need to make pickles. The farm also features a shop where you can find everything you need to make fresh quick pickles- spices, jars, cookbooks, vinegars, and of course, the cucumbers. They even have cute labels and twine for your finished pickles, as well as pre-made canned and pickled foods and other cute canning-themed items for you to purchase.

Customers make their selections from different sizes and
varieties of farm fresh pickling cucumbers.

Every Saturday the farm's shop has a pickling demonstration. They teach customers the cold-pack method, what I call quick pickles or fridge pickles- fresh cucumbers, spices, pickling brine, and no heat processing. These are not shelf-stable pickles- they go into the fridge, and believe me, the best pickles are made this way- always crisp and crunchy. Their recipe is featured on the website and interestingly, they use two sizes of cucumbers in each jar. Just looking at all the pictures made me crave pickles!

The shop features pre-packaged spice mixtures for
different types of pickles- so easy!

Let's talk about this pickle party. Tamara tells me it's a ton of fun and very versatile- you can come just by yourself or bring friends (up to 23 people per party). You just schedule a time and when you get there, they have everything you need on a tray for each party-goer. You get the jars, a paring knife, one grape leaf per jar, sliced onion, sliced red pepper, fresh dill, garlic cloves, spices, and a label for your jar. 

What an awesome setup, all ready for the Pickle Partiers

The center of the table is piled with different sizes of pickling cucumbers. The first thing you do is choose your cukes and fill your jar, then you return to your tray, remove the cucumbers from the jar and get ready to pickle. 

Shaking those pickles!

The instructor walks you through each step, how to add ingredients to your jar and in what order, and you make your jars of pickles, topping with the pickling brine. The cost of the class is per jar- $8 for quarts and $6.50 for pints, and you can make one jar or many many jars- totally up to you. This sounds like so much fun!

They even sell commercial mixes for people who want to
make pickles with a minimum of fuss and measuring.

Luckily for those of us who don't live nearby, the Duris Farm shares their pickle recipe on their website. Let's make some Duris Cold Pack Refrigerator Dills. For each quart jar you will need:

(add in order)
1 grape leaf
1 stalk fresh dill wound in a small circle
3 peeled cloves of garlic
1/8 sliced white onion
3 teaspoons pickling salt
2 teaspoons mustard seed
15 whole black peppercorns
1/2 to 1 dried red chili pepper
1/4 teaspoon alum
1/4 fresh jalapeno pepper, sliced
1 slice sweet red bell pepper (place against the side of the jar)
5 medium cucumbers, blossom end removed
2-3 small cucumbers, blossom end removed
1/2 cup of 5% apple cider vinegar

Fill the jar to 1/2 inch headspace with tap water. Top with a lid and ring, tighten, and shake to dissolve the powders. Store in the refrigerator. Pickles will be ready to enjoy in 3-4 3 weeks. Enhanced flavor is achieved by allowing them to cure in the fridge longer.

Pickle jars in every size and color!

How easy is that? I am a huge fan of fridge pickles- no need to drag out the big bulky canning pots and I can make every jar a little different. The pickles are always so much crisper and fresher than heat processed pickles and they retain their color better too.

Tamara is a big supporter of local producers and frequents the produce stands all over her area. She tells me the Puyallup Valley has some of the most fertile soils anywhere as well the areas surrounding eastern Washington, which is a huge agricultural area. Tamara likes keeping in touch with local growers so she gets a heads up on great deals so she can preserve fresh foods for her family at home, and is an avid home canner. She really loved sharing the Pickle Party with her granddaughters. Maybe they will be the next generation of home food preservers!

Abby and Tamara show us each step

**All the photos in this story were taken by Tamara on her recent visit to the farm.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Make It Yourself: Chipotle Chilies in Adobo Sauce

A while back I conducted a little non-scientific survey among my friends, and asked "what is a food trend you would like to see disappear?" Some were really good answers, like kale chips- let's face it, kale is great and all, but munching on a dried up leaf is not my idea of a good snack. Someone else felt that the bacon craze was getting a little out of hand, and another wanted cupcakes to take a hike.

Dried chipotle peppers getting ready for a long slow simmer

The most surprising response was chipotle peppers. Of course, here at our house we love hot and spicy foods, so any kind of chili pepper is my friend. I can't imagine wanting a pepper to go away. Chipotle peppers are one of those foods that a lot of recipes ask for, but I never seem to have in the pantry. It's only natural that I'd want to make it myself.

After a few hours of cooking they are plump, soft and
spicy/smoky delicious

Chipotle peppers are smoked jalapeno peppers. You can buy these at just about any larger grocery store or Hispanic foods market but if you are an experienced pitmaster you can easily smoke fresh jalapenos and dry them. I got mine at Penzey's and they are really inexpensive. 

Chioptle peppers are dried smoked jalapenos

The adobo sauce is easy- basically a spiced tomato sauce- you simmer the dried jalapenos in the sauce until they are softened and the sauce thickens and takes on that sweet smoky pepper flavor. These are easy to process in the small 4 ounce canning jars for shelf stable storage, or pop in the freezer if you don't want to process in a canner. This recipe is super simple and doesn't require a whole lot of attention if you use a slow cooker to reduce the sauce.

The rich, thick adobo sauce packs a TON of flavor

Let's heat things up in here!

Homemade Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce

1 1/2 ounces dried chipotle peppers

4 cups tomato puree

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon onion powder or 1/2 cup minced onion

2 teaspoons garlic powder or 4-6 garlic cloves, minced 
1/4 cup honey

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

dash ground cloves

Combine everything in a slow cooker and cook on high until thick, leaving the lid ajar so the sauce can evaporate and thicken. This can take 30 minutes to two hours. 

Loads of flavor getting ready to happen

Prepare a pressure canner and 4 ounce canning jars, with lids.

The peppers plump up and soften during cooking

Ladle the peppers and sauce into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Process the jars for 35 minutes at the correct weight for your altitude, for me it's 15 lbs. Cool completely before testing the seals.

These are so handy for all kinds of recipes and are better than the store bought chipotles in metal cans. If you open a jar and don't use the entire contents, just pop the lid back on and store in the freezer until you need it again. I had more than enough of the Adobo sauce so I canned the extra in 3 half pint jars for future experiments.

The finished jars

When I was making this recipe the aroma was incredible. The mixture of those warm spices, the cloves, allspice and cinnamon, are just heavenly together and the spicy hint of chipotle just takes it to a whole other level. I can't wait to open the first jar after they have mellowed for a couple months. The amount of chipotles compared to the amount of liquid looked a little off at first, but after cooking the peppers absorbed some of the liquid and plumped up. 

I removed as much of the stem from the peppers as I could. It wasn't easy to get them off but I did the best I could. You can leave them on if you like but you will want to remove them when you use the peppers later.

BIG thanks to my good friend Elaine, owner of FireFood, for her advice, discussion and expertise in working with hot peppers and canned foods. She spent considerable time talking with me about any issues that might affect safety, pH, pressure versus water bath, and so on.

NOTE: This recipe has not been tested by the NCHFP. If you are not comfortable canning untested recipes, please do not use this one.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Artisan Condiments- Spicy Tomato Jam

I don't normally share a whole lot of home canning recipes here, rather over on City Girl, Country Life, but this recipe just seemed to be more at home over here on RTK. So there. You don't have to freak out and think "What the ****!! I don't know how to can things!" You don't have to- you can freeze it as well. 

Fancy jams are another trendy food that gets labeled as "artisan" these days. I often think that term is overused but some foods, like homemade small batch jams, are probably deserving. Jams aren't just for breakfast anymore and that's where tomato jam finds it's unique little niche. Depending on your recipe it can be absolutely appropriate for the breakfast table, but a little switching up of flavors, spices and adding some heat and acidity and you've moved over into the savory condiment section. I call this my ketchup for grownups.

You might wonder what all the fuss is about. It's jam. Big deal. But it's much more than that. It's jam alright, but it's spicy and sweet and savory and it's delicious and the perfect thing for crowning a juicy burger or alongside a nice hunk of beef. Want a grilled cheese that's just a little more than sliced American and white bread? Break out the GOOD cheese, some crispy bacon or crispy prosciutto, a smear of tomato jam on crusty sourdough and grill that baby up. It makes meatloaf a little more special than gramma's drizzle of ketchup over the top, and it's REALLY GOOD. Really good. So good you'll find yourself never wanting ketchup ever ever again. That's just the BASIC recipe! This time we're rewriting a page from City Girl's Canning Cookbook and making it RTK Style.

This rich and gooey jam starts with tomatoes. Summertime in Iowa is without a doubt the best time to get tomatoes. If you grow your own- even better! This summer was horrible for my garden and I had zero tomatoes to speak of. Thankfully I have access to some great farmers markets and was able to get a nice 10 lbs or so of beautiful red ripe Romas. You can use any kind of tomato you like but Romas are known for their meaty texture and drier interior- so the jam doesn't have to cook quite as long as some of the juicier tomatoes do. Any color tomato works too. I love tomato jam made with orange or yellow tomatoes- it looks so beautiful in the jars. Prep was easy-I sat down with my tomatoes and halved them, removed the core, scooped out the seeds and diced them. I leave the skin on my tomatoes because it's too much work to remove them, I don't mind them in my food and they are extra fiber really, but you can blanch and remove the peel if you want to.

Dice them up and put them in a large bowl. Measure them as you go and you won't have to do it again later. This recipe relies on evaporation to thicken, not pectin, so the recipe is flexible. The amount of sugar depends on the amount of tomatoes and I just cut up tomatoes until I'd used them all.

We need some heat and spice in this jam. The original recipe calls for cayenne pepper, but we have all kinds of beautiful peppers here so a good handful of fresh kung pao chilies got chopped finely and added to the party. Also in the original recipe is shredded or grated fresh ginger. I just so happen to have all that crystallized ginger tucked away n the freezer, so I plucked out a few slices and minced them up. Cumin, cinnamon and allspice go in as well, and a twist on the plain old salt. Because this is used as a savory condiment, I like those savory notes to hit from all over, so instead of plain salt I used some Montreal Steak Seasoning. Love this stuff- I just keep it on the counter in a salt crock and use it on everything. 

Spicy Sweet Tomato Jam

10 lbs Roma tomatoes

sugar

3/4 cup bottled lemon juice*

6-8 fresh kung pao chilies**

2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger

1 teaspoon ground cumin

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning

vinegar of choice, if needed

*Always use bottled lemon juice because it has a stable acidity level

**If you don't have kung pao chilies, use cayenne or whatever you have on hand, to taste. You can use fresh or dried and ground. I would start with 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne and taste- add more if desired.

Peel tomatoes if desired. Halve; remove cores and seeds and dice. Place in large stockpot, measuring as you go. For every 3 cups tomatoes, add one cup sugar. I ended up with about 16 cups of tomatoes and used 5 cups of sugar. Stir to mix. Add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until mixture is very thick, reduced, and mounds when spooned out. Be sure to taste the jam at least twice. You want to adjust for heat, and if the jam is too sweet, add a splash or so of an additional acid- balsamic vinegar or rice wine vinegar are great. Make sure you do this while still cooking down so it maintains the thickness.

The tomatoes start out bright red.......

Prepare a boiling water bath canner and jars (pint or half pint), or freezer containers. Spoon hot jam into jars, fix lids and rings and process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes; or spoon into freezer containers. Allow to cool slightly, then freeze.

Look at all the deep caramelization going on there.

Now this jam can take a loooooong time to thicken. I usually do it in the crock pot with the lid off. I can let it go overnight and in the morning be ready to go into jars and there is almost zero chance of scorching. Don't get discouraged if you go to give it a stir and it seems too watery- I promise, it WILL evaporate and thicken.

A couple notes about canning and food safety: 

Home canned foods can be amazing and wonderful and unlike any other food in the grocery store, but they can also be deadly. Be sure to practice safe food handling when canning- ALWAYS use a boiling water bath for high acid foods or a pressure canner for low acid food. NEVER place hot food in jars, invert them, and let them seal without heat processing. 

Along those same lines, it's very tempting to add a lot of extras to home canned foods to customize them. Unless you are a microbiologist or have a very in depth knowledge of home canning safety- DON'T. Stick with tested recipes. This recipe is only different from a USDA tested recipe because of the change in spices, which do not affect acidity. Never add things like onions or garlic as they can upset the pH and make the recipe unsafe and allow botulism to grow in the sealed jars.

Pay attention to your altitude. It affects heat and processing time. Always adjust for your altitude.

NOTE: This recipe has not been tested by the NCHFP. If you are not comfortable canning untested recipes, please do not use this one. For home canning information, visit the NCHFP website.

Trending- Pickle All The Things

Sorry....sorry..... I know, more food trends. I can't help it! Besides always looking for something interesting and delicious to cook, I am also always watching food trends. Who wants to be a year behind the eight ball? Not me! I missed the kale trend and that was a lesson learned. 

I have been reading lots and lots of year end wrap-ups and forecasts for the coming year in food trends- what's in, what's out, what's the new super food, the new kale, the new hip dessert. A lot of writers were poking a little fun at hipsters and how they drive some of these trends. One of them caught my attention- as a home preserver and gardener I can see myself becoming equally obsessed- pickling. 

Maybe not an authentic Chicago Italian Beef but the
giardiniera was just as delicious!!!

As a home preserver who is focused on shelf-stable foods, I tend to stick to the book and not venture into untested recipes and so on (pretty sure I never want a visit from Mr. Botulism) so in that regard a pickle is a pickle is a pickle. However....... if we want to venture into quick pickling, or fridge pickling, hey the world is wide open. If you can shove it in a jar, you can pretty much pickle it!

All kinds of goodness and flavors waiting for me to sample

Quick pickles are so incredibly easy- no lugging out big huge pots and boiling gallons of water and plucking jars out of boiling cauldrons. Oh heck no- a clean jar, something to put in it, and a brine and you're in business.

Carrot pickles have a sweet and sour taste with a hint of spice

A while back I was watching an episode of Haylie Duff's Real Girl's Kitchen in which she and a friend visited a rooftop farm for fresh peppers and then headed to Brooklyn Brine for some homemade pickled peppers. The girls packed their jars with beautiful fresh peppers and topped off with a basic pickling brine. She added a pretty darn generous splash of whiskey to her pickled peppers!! Since we're talking about fridge pickles here, we don't have to worry about a lil bit o' hooch messing up our acid balance.

Fresh and colorful

What can you make into pickles? Basically anything. Raw or cooked vegetables or fruits. Cooked meat or eggs- like the big bar jars of pickled eggs and chubby sausages floating in brine. We are going to make a few pickles that are pretty versatile- serve as part of a relish tray, as a condiment on sandwiches or salads, in a Bloody Mary. The best part about these recipes- SWITCH IT UP! They don't have to be shelf stable so use your favorite veggies, herbs, flavor of vinegar- experiment!

Carrot Pickles.  Your relish trays will never be the same.

1 lb carrot sticks

1 cup sugar
1 cup water

1 cup vinegar

1 stick cinnamon

1 tb whole cloves

I prefer carrot sticks but you can use baby carrots if you like

Precook carrots for 5-10 mins in boiling water. Drain and set aside. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan, bring to boil. Pack the carrots in a jar (they should all fit in a quart jar) with the cloves and cinnamon stick and pour the hot brine over. Pop in the fridge and chill at least 3 days before serving.

Crunchy and sweet

Pickled condiments are a great addition to your fridge stockpile. Think beyond the humble dill burger chip. Pickled onions, pickled veggie mixes and shredded slaw-like relishes pack a flavor punch and bring a tangy crunch to whatever dish you pile them on. Our pickled onions are absolutely delicious on burgers, brats and roast beef sandwiches. 

Pickled Grilled Red Onions. Red onions are the best choice but you can use any onion you like.

4 small or 2 large red onions

olive oil

1 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

salt and pepper

Slice onion thickly and brush the cut sides with olive oil. Keep the onions together as much as possible- you can use toothpicks if you need to. 

I halved my slices to make jarring up easier

Fire up your grill or use a grill pan to char onions well. Use the highest heat you can so you get the char fast without overcooking the onion. In a pinch you can use the broiler, heated to the highest setting. Let cool then cut slices in half crosswise. I cut mine in half before charring. Pack into jars. 

Red onions with a nice red wine tang. Yum!

Combine wine vinegar, sugar and salt and pepper and heat to dissolve sugar. Pour over onions. Pop in fridge overnight.  Try not to eat them all in one sitting. 

Getting some good ideas yet? You aren't limited to just vegetables. Pickled eggs, pickled sausages (fully cooked), and pickled cheeses- use firm cheese that can be cubed and don't plan on keeping them around too long- are great as quick appetizers or snacks and make awesome garnishes for a Bloody Mary Bar.

Pickled Asparagus. Make it a jar at a time or make several for gifts.

For each quart jar-

1 lb fresh asparagus, ends trimmed

6 scallions, roots trimmed

2 slices lemon or lime

2 cloves garlic, bruised/smashed

2 tablespoons mixed pickling spice 

1 dried long red pepper (such as cayenne)

Trim the asparagus and scallions to fit in a wide mouth quart jar. Pack them in the jar, tips up and onion bulbs down. Hide the garlic bulbs in there, tuck the lemon slices on the sides and stick the red pepper in the jar. Sprinkle with pickling spice.

In a saucepan heat 1/2 cup water, 1 1/2 cups vinegar and 1/2 cup sugar, til dissolved. Pour over asparagus. Pop the lid on and place in the fridge. Wait at least 48 hours before using, and you can pull that pepper out and discard it after the first day for a lighter level of heat. 

Those asparagus- YUM! Totally belong in your Bloody Mary but I like to eat them just the way they are. They are perfect for salads too. Delicious! Of course, as a Midwesterner, I would be in big trouble if I didn't include a recipe for the classic Italian pickled relish, Giardiniera. Love love love this stuff, and since it's not processed like dill pickles, the veggies always stay crisp and I don't have to worry about that olive oil that MUST be included.

Tangy, crunchy, and a little bit spicy

Super Quick Giardiniera. The classic condiment for Chicago Style Italian Beef is also a great addition to salads, as a tapenade or mix into dips.

Finely chop the veggies, like in a relish

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1 cup chopped red bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped carrot

1/2 cup chopped cauliflower

2-4 tablespoons chopped jalapeno (or more if you like it hot)*

4 cloves garlic chopped

1 cup chopped pimiento stuffed olives

1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning

pinch crushed red pepper

several grinds black pepper

1 cup vinegar

1 cup olive oil

*I did not have fresh jalapenos, so I substituted from my dehydrated pepper stash- I used 3 dried Serrano chilies, crushed, instead. You can use any hot pepper you like. If I made this during the summer months I would substitute hot banana peppers for sure.

That new knife is getting quite a workout this week.

Combine all ingredients. Chill 48 hours.

Veggie love!

Pickling doesn't end there. Pickled peppers, relishes, chow chow, I could type for hours and hours.... Remember, the truly genius thing about quick pickles- you don't have to work out the chemistry- just find your favorites and get pickling!