Pickled Carrots with Dill

I recently bought a 5 pound bag of carrots, which is really a lot of carrots. I was making my daughter's birthday cake for her one-year birthday party. The cake was OK (pretty dense, I'm not a baker!), and I used up most of the rest of the bag making a Moroccan carrot salad for Rosh Hashana dinner. For the remaining pound of carrots, I figured why not pickle?

For this recipe, I wanted to get away from the typical pickled carrots that one finds in a Mexican or Middle Eastern restaurant. You know, the ones mixed with caulifllower and cabbage and hot peppers. I love that stuff, but I was in the mood for something lighter, and a little sweet (for a sweet new year, perhaps?)

I used:

1 pound carrots, peeled
1 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1.5 tsp dry dill*
1.5 tsp course salt
2 garlic cloves

*You can also use dill seed for a stronger flavor. However, do not use fresh dill for this recipe, as it tends to wilt and get stringy, which takes away from the fun crunch of these carrots.







Peel the carrots and cut into sticks. Not too thin, or it becomes like a slaw and not too thick or it will take longer for the brine to soak in. This nice thing about these carrots is that they can be ready in a day.

To get the carrots softened, but retain the crispiness, you want to blanch them. To blanch, drop the carrots in a pot of salted boiling water for one minute and immediately pull them out and put them into an ice bath to stop the cooking process. This will give them a great texture and make them take the brine better.

Now, make the pickling brine. Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, garlic and dill into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 3 minutes.






Put the carrots into a small jar that with a suction seal. Pour the brine over the carrots to cover them and let it sit, open, until the brine cools.

Once it is cooled to room temperature, seal the jar, put a label with the date and stick in the fridge. They will be ready in 24 hours. These will keep for up to a month.

Make several batches for autumn gifts or to bring to the next dinner party, instead of a bottle of wine.

Spicy dill pickles

I am currently in California at my parent's house. Baby is down for a nap so it's a perfect time for my mom and I to make some pickles. Pickles are easy and quick to make, but they can turn out delicious or lacking, and everyone likes their pickles slightly different. The trick with pickles is to try out a few recipes and find the flavor, consistency and salt level you like.

This recipe is my mom's and it's a huge hit among everyone who tries them. The peppers are an option for those of us who like a little bite, but if you shy from heat, they can be ommitted.

We used:
17 small cucumbers (sometimes called Persian or Cocktail cucumbers)
1/2 package of dill (about 10 stems)
1 Serrano pepper
2 garlic cloves
Brine (see below)

Cut the very tip of the cucumber off, on the side where the stem grows. This speeds up the pickling process and helps eliminate any bitterness the cucumber may have. Slice the pepper into 4 pieces, seeds included, and slice garlic into thick slices.

Using a clean jar, place all the cucumbers vertically, nice and tight. Any extra cucumbers can be laid on top. Integrate the pepper, garlic and whole dill stems throughout.

Mix up a brine of 3 TBS salt to 1 liter water and mix thoroughly until salt has dissolved.  Pour the brine over the cucumbers ensuring they are completely covered. We leave the jar open to allow air bubbles to escape and to prevent fermentation, so it's important to place a heavy bowl or small plate on top of the cucumbers to keep them submerged. Cucumbers that are exposed to air can pick up bacteria.









Let the jar sit, open, for about three days, making sure the cucumbers are always submerged. After 4 days take a taste. I like my cucumbers crispy and lightly pickled, so 4 days are perfect. If you like a stronger pickle, give it a couple more days. Once the desired pickle is achieved, close the jar and stick them in the fridge, where they will keep for up to a month. Enjoy!