Home Made Dill Pickles - A First Experiment

Making Your own pickles is a great way to put all those extra vegetables to use

So my backyard garden is producing cucumbers at an alarming rate. We've been eating quite a few of them, and even gave a few to our neighbors, but it's clear that we will have more cucumbers than we know what to do with. There is one thing that can help preserve all these great fresh cucumbers, and put them to good use later- I guess the saying should be- if life gives you cucumbers, make pickles! (OK, so that's not the saying, but you get the idea). I've never made pickles before, but the process is fairly simple if you have a a lot of cucumbers, a few basic pantry items, and the right mix of spices. After hunting around for some information about pickling, I found a general process that's easy enough to be a starting point for what will probably be a whole summer of pickling...

Simple Fresh Cucumber Salad

Cucumber Salad served with a light lunch

As a kid, vegetables of any kind (even ones that were actually a fruit...) were a hard sell. There were few that I would eat, and it was nearly impossible to convince me otherwise, unless you dumped a gallon of cheese sauce on it. I also came from a family that always had a backyard garden- so we typically had fresh cucumbers (among other things- I would actually pick and eat string beans raw even though I only tolerated them cooked). My mom used to cut up the cucumbers and make a very simple salad from them, that I actually liked. A big part of that was the fact that the cucumbers were typically picked about 60 seconds before being served- even kids can tell the difference between fresh, quality produce, and the cheap stuff that's been sitting around too long.  Here's my take on Mom's simple cucumber salad...

Peppers and Eggs (technically it's a Frittata)

Pepper and Egg Fritatta served on a Grilled Ham Steak

One of the things my mother used to make frequently was what she called "Peppers and Eggs" - which was a little odd since it also contained potatoes, and sometimes leftover sausage too. This is basically a fritatta - an over-sized, open faced, omelette that is generally served in slices like a pie or quiche rather than whole - almost an egg pie with a variety of fillings. My mother's version was basically a way to make a meal out of a few leftover baked potatoes and/or leftover sausages combined with some freshly sauteed onions and peppers. The version I'm describing here is meant as a side dish, or a companion to a piece of meat (or just as breakfast by itself!). I'm focusing on the vegetables and potatoes, so if we serve it with a piece of meat - such as a grilled ham steak- we have a complete and filling meal.

The Heavy Metal Vegan Chef ?!?

Finally, something I can post both here AND on my hard rock/heavy metal blog at the same time...

Check below the break for a video of the Heavy Metal Chef whipping up vegan food. I'm no vegan, but when you cook to Dimmu Borgir, Six Feet Under, Iron Maiden, and Styper!?, you've got my attention. It's actually a pretty informative segment, and the "evil" heavy metal references are firmly tongue in cheek.

Gemelli with Sausage in Olive Oil

Gemelli with Sausage in Olive Oil

Pasta may seem like a boring, plain, overused thing to most people. In reality, it is a blank canvas that can easily be made into an almost infinite variety of excellent dishes. The only limits are your imagination, your sense of what flavors work well together, and what you have in your pantry/freezer/garden. Ironically, most good pasta dishes are fairly simple- a few good quality ingredients are all you need.

Grilled Swiss with Tomato on White Bread

Grilled cheese - swiss, grilled tomato with herbs, white bread.

In my previous discussions about grilled cheese, I try to point out how easy it is to forget the importance of the quality of the bread. Here, I throw that idea out the window, and make the cheapest, most basic, store bought sliced bread into something special...

Old Man Rafferty's - Hillsborough, New Jersey

Pork Medallions with Gnocchi

Today my two daughters had their dance recital, and a few family and friends came out to see them- so we felt it was a great opportunity to take everyone out for dinner. Luckily, there's a local restaurant that serves well crafted, yet comforting food at a fair price (and has a killer selection of desserts) called Old Man Rafferty's.