Pickling Summer--Beets and Beyond

My mother didn't have a pantry or cellar filled with jars of colorful canned fruits and vegetables.  While I have fond summer memories of mother and nanny "stringing" green beans, those beans were for our next meal.  They went into a pot rather than a jar for our winter's dining.  However, there were several aunts who did preserve food by canning.  When we visited, we usually came home with a jar or two of something that had recently been "put up".  My favorite was beets.  From an early age, I loved those beautiful roots!  Bell's Blue Book of Canning is a part of my cookbook library--has been for years.  Many times I've pulled it out fully intending to preserve something of a summer garden.  So far, that hasn't happened except for pickled things.  Things that can line up on the refrigerator shelves.  I have tried many pickled beets recipes and have liked them all.  Here's the one I use most.

Easy Pickled Beets

1 bunch of red beets

1 bunch of orange beets

(8 good-sized beets total)

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

salt to taste

4 garlic cloves, peeled and halved

1 tablespoon sugar

Wash the beets and place, unpeeled, in a saucepan, cover with water, add 1/4 cup of the vinegar and salt to taste.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover.  Simmer 30-40 minutes until tender.  Remove from the heat, add the garlic to the pot and allow the beets to cool in the liquid.

Remove the beets and the garlic from the pot, reserving the liquid.  Peel the beets and cut each into wedges.

Combine the remaining 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar and the sugar.  Stir to dissolve and add 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid from the beets.  Toss with the beets and the garlic.  Refrigerate for at least two hours and up to a week. 

Serve cold or warmed.

And, delicious on sandwiches and in salads, 

Pickled Red Onion

1 large red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
3/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/3 cup water
3 Tbsp sugar
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
5-6 whole allspice
4 whole cloves

1.  Place all ingredients except the onions into a non-reactive saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2.  Add onions and simmer, stirring occasionally for about ten minutes.  A bit of crispness should remain.
3.  Pour all into a jar.  Cover and refrigerate for up to a month.

Enjoy!