Tag: cucumbers (Page 1 of 2)

Bubbie’s Bread & Butter Chips Pickle Recipe

October 5, 2022 / Lindsey / 0 Comments

Hello! It’s been a while since I posted something, and I hope all is well on your end.

My original Bubbie’s pickle knockoff recipe is a popular one, and here is another one you may enjoy. If you like the taste, but not the price tag, of Bubbie’s Bread & Butter pickles, try this out. I think I like mine even better.

I have been enjoying these for a couple years now, and most often these days I will blend these into a sauce thanks to my gastroparesis and global dysmotility. I just dump everything into the blender, juice and spices and all, and what comes out is a tangy, delicious pickle sauce! I always peel my cucumbers for this recipe though, because I think it tastes better to not have the peels.

Bubbie’s Bread & Butter Chips pickle recipe

3 lbs cucumbers
½ cup thinly sliced onion (about half of a medium onion)
3 TBSP canning/pickling salt, or regular table salt
2 cups white vinegar
½ cup water
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 TBSP whole yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp celery seeds
¼ tsp ground turmeric

1. Peel the cucumbers, and slice them ¼-inch thick. Crinkle cut is fun, but you can use a normal knife too.

2. Place the cucumber and onion slices in a large bowl and toss thoroughly with the salt. Transfer them into a colander, and place the colander over a smaller bowl so that they can drain freely and won’t sit in the salty cucumber liquid.

3. Let them sit at room temperature for 1 – 2 hours.

4. Discard the salty liquid that has collected in the smaller bowl, and rinse the cucumbers and onions under running water. Give them a good rinse, but don’t be totally thorough.
Divide the cucumbers and onions between two quart-sized canning jars.

5. In a medium saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds, and turmeric. Bring to a boil, and then pour this hot mixture into the cucumber jars, filling them nearly to the top. Stick a butter knife into each jar and jostle the cucumbers, freeing any air bubbles. If necessary, top up the jar with any remaining hot vinegar mixture.
Secure the lids onto the jars, but you won’t actually be canning them. Keep the jars on the counter to cool (I leave them overnight).

6. Once cool, transfer to the refrigerator. They will keep for at least 6 months.

Late-August Vegetable Garden Tour

August 26, 2019 / Lindsey / 4 Comments

Hello!

It’s a busy time of year in my garden; in late August the produce is really starting to flood in, meaning a LOT of kitchen time between now and October!

All the time and effort spent thus far in my garden is really starting to pay off though. We have our own private organic farmer’s market just outside the back gate! Here, I’ll show you…

Let’s start in the fruit “orchard” where we have one apple tree, two peach trees, and three or four grape vines. Believe it or not, these are two of the peach trees I started from seed, documented in this post from 9 years ago! I make the grape jam that I love from the grapes, and have been starting to use our cut-up Winesap apples as the fruit in my morning green shake. Later on, I’ll make big batches of applesauce with them.

Standing at the North end of the garden:

Standing at the South end of the garden:

Celery:

Honeydew melons:

Watermelons:

*****

Gazpacho & Garden Shopping List

August 30, 2011 / Lindsey / 3 Comments

I love this time of the year because meals can be made almost entirely out of the garden! Today I made one of my faaaaaavorite dishes, Gazpacho. How can a combination of vegetables taste so good?!

And since the gazpacho used up almost all the produce I picked last week at my garden, I was really tickled to be writing up a “shopping list” for the things I need to get when I go back in the next couple days. Going shopping in one’s own garden is way too much fun!

Wilted Cucumbers? Bake Them!

October 3, 2010 / Lindsey / 0 Comments

Ever wonder what to do with cucumbers that have begun to wilt and lose their crunch? Obviously the first thing you’d think of is to make a Loch Ness monster like the one below, right?

Loch Ness Cucumber, (c) The Herbangardener

The Loch Ness Cucumber

I thought so.

And although that’s fun — yes — the thing that really uses up those cukes is to bake them. This was originally a Julia Child recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, but I’ve tweaked it somewhat to be simpler, with bolder flavors. I never thought to bake a cucumber until my mom made them last year; delicious! And a real bonus is that they freeze pretty well after baking. Thawed, they’re a little softer than the original out-of-the-oven ones, but that doesn’t bother you, right?

Try them out…I think they’re absolutely delicious! They have kind of a pickle-y flavor, yet gentle and buttery. This recipe makes a fair amount, but they do cook down to about half their original volume; and of course, feel free to cut the recipe in half.

Baked Cucumbers

3 lbs cucumbers

1/2 cup finely minced onion

1/4 – 1/3 cup wine vinegar (to your liking)

1/4 tsp sugar

1 1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp dry basil

1 Tbsp dry dill weed

4 Tbsp butter, melted

1/4 cup minced parsley (optional, for serving)

Preheat oven to 375*. Peel cucumbers if the skin is bitter. Cut them in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Cut into lengthwise strips 1/4″ to 1/2″ wide. Cut the strips into pieces that are 2″ long.

Mix all ingredients together, stirring well to evenly coat the cucumber pieces. Divide into two baking pans (I use two 9″x13″ glass pans) and bake, uncovered, for about an hour, tossing every 20-30 minutes. They should be tender, but still have a little crunch. Sprinkle with minced parsley (if desired), and serve. Mmmm!

Israeli Cucumber-Tomato Salad

September 14, 2010 / Lindsey / 2 Comments

I love eating this light, fresh Israeli staple dish almost every day now that the tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and parsley are so abundant in the garden. In fact, preparing and eating this particular salad brings me so much joy because almost all of its ingredients come from our garden. I close my eyes and savor each bite, knowing I’m nourishing my body with the very freshest, purest food possible, and that feels so good! Our homegrown vegetables seem so alive and life-giving! I’m very grateful to have them.

Using quality ingredients in this salad will make it shine!…fresh, flavorful vegetables, good olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, unrefined sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

The ingredient amounts below are approximate, and I never measure when making this salad. Adjust the recipe to your liking!

Israeli Cucumber-Tomato Salad

Makes 1 large salad or two small side salads

1 large tomato, chopped (roughly equal to the amount of cucumber used)

1/2 a cucumber, chopped (roughly equal to the amount of tomato used)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (approximately!)

2-4 Tbsp green onion (or substitute a smaller amount of red or white onion), finely chopped

1-2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (about half a lemon)

2 Tbsp olive oil

Sea salt / freshly ground pepper to taste

Combine the tomato, cucumber, parsley, and onion; the proportions are up to you, but the recipe gives a rough idea. Drizzle the olive oil and lemon juice over the salad just before serving; I love the zingy taste of lemon so I use equal parts lemon juice and olive oil, but it’s more common to use 1 part lemon juice to 2 parts olive oil. Add salt & pepper to taste!

For packed lunches, I like to mix up the tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, onion, and ground pepper the night before, and then pack the olive oil and lemon juice in a small glass jar, adding that — along with the salt — at the last minute.

I love mine plain, but you can also serve this with rustic crackers or toasted pita bread.

For a nice variation, add Feta cheese and Kalamata olives! Or, add some cooked quinoa for protein to make it more of a main dish.