The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook - Martha Stewart Living Magazine [411]
2. Drain the artichokes. Fill a large saucepan with water. Add the artichokes, garlic halves, peppercorns, 1½ tablespoons salt, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and thyme to the saucepan. Set over high heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, using a few layers of cheesecloth or a plate to keep the artichokes submerged, until they are tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 5 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, and drain. Reserve the artichoke halves, some of the garlic, and a few sprigs of thyme. Place in a bowl, and drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with the remaining 1½ teaspoons salt and pinch of pepper. Keep refrigerated, up to 5 days, until needed.
ginger pickled beets
MAKES 1 QUART
Serve these beets as part of a picnic platter or relish tray, or use them in sandwiches or salads. Golden beets work as nicely as red ones. Leaving beet tails and an inch or so of the stems intact helps minimize the loss of color (as well as flavor and nutrients) during cooking. Trim and peel the beets after they’ve been boiled; the skins will come off easily.
5 or 6 medium red beets (about 1½ pounds without greens), tails and about 1 inch of stems left intact
½ cup thinly sliced, peeled fresh ginger (about 1½ ounces)
1½ cups rice wine vinegar
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1. Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Cover the beets with cold water by 2 inches in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer the beets until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, about 30 minutes. Transfer the beets with a slotted spoon to the ice-water bath. Discard the cooking liquid. Trim the beets, and rub off the skins with paper towels, or peel the beets with a paring knife. Cut the beets into very thin rounds; transfer to a large bowl.
2. Bring the ginger, vinegar, sugar, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the liquid over the beets; stir. Let stand until completely cool, at least 1 hour. Transfer to an airtight container, and refrigerate up to 1 month.
FIT TO EAT RECIPE PER SERVING (½ CUP): 91 CALORIES, 0 G FAT, 0 MG CHOLESTEROL, 33 G CARBOHYDRATE, 309 MG SODIUM, 1 G PROTEIN, 3 G FIBER
RELISHES AND PICKLED VEGETABLES
Relishes—those small, zesty foods meant to be nibbled—make delicious accompaniments to almost any meal. Often, a selection of pickled vegetables offsets the richness of meats and sauces and awakens the taste buds with each tangy, crunchy, salty bite. Relishes and pickled vegetables are common denominators across cultures too: Pickled cabbage and cucumbers are the standard in Korean and Japanese cuisine; turnips, peppers, and onions accompany spicy meals in the Middle East; and pickled mushrooms are classic fare in Russia. In fact, practically any vegetable can be pickled, and several types can be combined on a tray for a creative selection that stimulates the eye as well as the palate. When deciding which to choose, remember that relishes work best when the vegetables complement one another in flavor as well as appearance. The mellow flavor of raw creamer potato, for instance, neutralizes the tartness of crisp bread-and-butter pickles.
Here is a basic recipe to get you started. This recipe is sufficient to pickle 3 cantaloupes, 2 medium pumpkins, or 2 pounds pearl onions. Before pickling, peel the items, and cut them into chunks slightly larger than 1 inch; pearl onions can be left whole. To peel pearl onions, drop them in boiling water for 1 minute, and then drain in a colander. When cool enough to handle, slip off the papery skins.
3 cups sugar
2 cups apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons whole cloves
2 teaspoons allspice
1 cinnamon stick
1 piece (½-inch) of fresh ginger, peeled
1 lemon, thinly sliced
Items to be pickled
1. Heat the sugar and vinegar in a nonreactive stockpot over medium-high heat,