My paternal grandmother was a huge canner. She made everything -- canned tomatoes, rhubarb jam, all things pickled, and heck, she even made her own soap-with lye.
I'm not nearly this motivated, nor do we have all the equipment to be able to do all of this right now, but we're seriously contemplating the investment this year so we can start canning the beautiful items we pick up at the South Shore Farmers Market (and East Towne when we make the trek).
I don't know how many readers will actually remember when you could only buy produce in season as a kid, but I vaguely recall only being able to get certain items at certain times of year. None of this ridiculously expensive out of season asparagus or year round vine ripe tomatoes that are a lovely poisonous apple red whether it's November or May -- but I can't claim my parents were great at having us eat seasonally, either -- it didn't seem to be so much a priority in the 1970s and '80s as it seems to be now ... there were a lot of frozen and store-canned veggies on our dinner table as a kid. (But as an aside, at least vegetables were there, at every meal my parents prepared; and now, with Scott and I both as working parents, I'd be lying if I didn't admit to opening a can of peas or a bag of frozen white corn now and again, as much as we try to eat local and fresh.)
Regardless, Scott pulled out an old recipe for refrigerator pickles a few weeks ago that he got from a former co-worker a decade ago, so I dove in to try it. I love them -- they are lip-puckeringly sour, and just make you want to grill a fat juicy burger to go along with them, or as we did this weekend, they make a fabulous pickle relish for Chicago-style hot dogs. Until we get officially canning, these will keep me quite happy.
I was fascinated this morning to find, as I was thumbing through a recipe scrapbook my aunt made when my grandma passed away many years back, that the refrigerator pickle recipe Scott's coworker had was nearly identical to my grandmother's. Usually, there are about 500 different ways to make everything from cole slaw to lasagna, but refrigerator pickle recipes must all be basically the same tenet. So, that said, here's the recipe with a few minor alterations on my part; I hope you enjoy them as much as we did and they bring back fond memories for you as well. There is no official canning required-just a little chop and assemble time, and 3 days in the frig in mason jars or other glass, tight-sealing containers.
1 quart 5 percent white vinegar
3 quarts water
1 cup canning (uniodized) salt
1 tsp peppercorns
1 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp fennel seed
½ tsp crushed red pepper
1 ½ tsp pickling spices
1 white onion, diced
12-15 sprigs of fresh dill
8-10 cucumbers, thinly sliced
6 Mason jars or other tight-seal glass containers
In a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the vinegar, water and salt to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium-low and allow mixture to simmer until all the salt is dissolved.
Mix together the spices and diced onions (except for the dill), and separate the mixture out in equal amounts amongst the bottoms of your containers. Fill each container with cucumber slices and top with 2-3 sprigs of dill. Fill each container to the top with your vinegar and water brine. Seal and refrigerate immediately; let the pickles sit in the refrigerator at least three days before eating. Enjoy.
Amy L. Schubert is a 15-year veteran of the hospitality industry and has worked in every aspect of bar and restaurant operations. A graduate of Marquette University (B.A.-Writing Intensive English, 1997) and UW-Milwaukee (M.A.-Rhetoric, Composition, and Professional Writing, 2001), Amy still occasionally moonlights as a guest bartender and she mixes a mean martini.
The restaurant business seems to be in Amy’s blood, and she prides herself in researching and experimenting with culinary combinations and cooking techniques in her own kitchen as well as in friends’ restaurants. Both she and her husband, Scott, are avid cooks and “wine heads,” and love to entertain friends, family and neighbors as frequently as possible.
Amy and Scott live with their boys, Alex and Nick, in Bay View, where they are all very active in the community. Amy finds great pleasure in sharing her knowledge and passions for food and writing in her contributions to OnMilwaukee.com.
