IN A PICKLE & CO By Lizzie & Joshua Christian: November 2012

Monday, 5 November 2012

RED CABBAGE and FENNEL & SPICED PICKLED RED CABBAGE

RED CABBAGE

(Brassica oleracea var. capitata f. rubra)

The Red Cabbage is a sort of cabbage, which is also known as red kraut or blue kraut after preparation. Its leaves are coloured dark red/purple. However, the plant changes its colour according to the pH value of the soil, due to a pigment belonging to anthocyanins (flavins). On acidic soils, the leaves grow more reddish while an alkaline soil will produce rather greenish-yellow coloured cabbages. This explains the fact that the same plant is known by different colours in various regions. Furthermore, the juice of red cabbage can be used as a home-made pH indicator, turning red in acid and blue in basic solutions. It can be found in Northern Europe, throughout the Americas, and in China.

On cooking, red cabbage will normally turn blue. To retain the red colour it is necessary to add vinegar or acidic fruit to the pot.

Red cabbage needs well fertilized soil and sufficient humidity to grow. It is a seasonal plant which is seeded in spring and harvested in late fall. Red cabbage is a better keeper than its "white" relatives and does not need to be converted to sauerkraut to last the winter.

FENNEL & SPICED PICKLED RED CABBAGE
Made about 5 Jars

Red Cabbages

Sea-Salt

Malt Vinegar
(Cider or Red Wine Vinegar optional)

Fennel Seeds

Pickling Spices

Sugar

METHOD
1) Cut off and discard the outer leaves from the cabbage.

2) Quarter and remove the tougher inner stalk. Shred the cabbage, wash and drain well.

3) Layer in a basin, or pack the shredded cabbage into the four jars in layers with sea-salt, ending with a layer of sea-salt.

4 Leave in a dark place for 24 hours.

5) Empty the jars into a calender and wash throroughly in cold water and drain well.

6) Pack the red cabbage back into clean, sterilized jars and pour in cold, spiced vinegar (with red wine, optional)

7) Cover the jars and label with contents and dates.

NB... Ready after 1 Week. If you keep it any longer than 10-12 weeks it will loose its crispness.

Quick Spiced Vinegar:

2 inch Cinnamon

1 tsp Cloves

2 tsp Allspice Berries

1 tsp Black peppercorns

1 tsp Mustard Seed

2-3 Bay leaves

2 Pints Vinegar (Malt) (Cider or Red Wine Vinegar)

CABBAGE & SAUERKRAUT

Brassica oleracea

(Cruciferae)

CABBAGE

DESCRIPTION Biennial or perennial herb growing up to 2.5 m (8ft). Has a thick stem, grey leaves and 4-petlalled yellow flowers. Within the first year, it produces a greatly enlarged bud that develops into the familiar cabbagehead in late summer.

HABITAT & CULTIVATION Wild cabbage is native of the English Channel and the Mediterraean. Cultivated varieties are produced worldwide as a vegetabled as a vegetable.

PARTS USED Leaves

CONSISTITUENTS Cabbage is rich in vitamins A, B1, B2 and C.

HISTORY & FOLKLORE The wholeome cabbage is one of the oldest vegetables. According to greek myth, the plant sprang into existence from the perspiration of Zeus. In a Greek ritual, cabbage was given to expectant mothers shortly before birth in order to establish good breast-milk production. The Romans used cabbage, as an antidote, especially to alcohol, believing it countered intoxication and prevented or reduced a hangover. They also used cabbage leaves to cleanse infected wounds. One traditional method of making a cabbage poultice, still used today, is to cut the thick midrib of a leaf and iron it, placing it while still hot on the area to be treated.

MEDICINAL ACTIONS & USES Cabbage's best-known medicinal use ia as a poultice - the leaves of the wild or cultivated cabbage plant are blanched, crushed or chopped, and applied to swellings, tumours and painful joints. Wild cabbage leaves eaten raw or cooked aid digestion and the breakdown of toxins in the liver - so the Romans' eating it to ease a hangover was in fact quite justified. Cabbage is also detoxifying and helpful in the longterm treatment of arthritis. The high vitamin C content of cabbage has made it useful in the prevention of scurvy.

CAUTION A cabbage poultice may cause blisters if left on for several hours.

SAUERKRAUT ("Sour Cabbage")

This is finely cut cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria, including Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcu. It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid that forms when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage. It is not to be confused with coleslaw, which consists of fresh cabbage and may receive an acidic taste from

Sauerkraut is made by a process of pickling called lacto-fermentation that is analogous to how traditional (not heat-treated) pickled cucumbers and kimichi are made. Fully cured sauerkraut keeps for several months in an airtight container stored at or below 15 °C (60 °F). Neither refrigeration nor pasteurization is required, although these treatments prolong storage life. German sauerkraut is often flavoured with juniper berries.

Fermentation by lactobacilli is introduced naturally, as these air-borne bacteria culture on raw cabbage leaves where they grow. Yeasts also are present, and may yield soft sauerkraut of poor flavor when the fermentation temperature is too high. The fermentation process has three phases. In the first phase, anaerobic bacteria such as Klebsiella and Enterobacter lead the fermentation, and begin producing an acidic environment that favours later bacteria. The second phase starts as the acid levels become too high for many bacteria, and Leuconostoc mesenteroides and other Leuconostoc spp. take dominance. In the third phase, various Lactobacillus species, including L. brevis and L. plantarum, ferment any remaining sugars, further lowering the pH. Properly cured sauerkraut is sufficiently acidic to prevent a favorable environment for the growth of Clostridium botulinum, the toxins of which cause botulism.

A 2004 genomic study found an unexpectedly large diversity of lactic acid bacteria in sauerkraut, and that previous studies had oversimplified this diversity. Weissella was found to be a major organism in the initial, heterofermentative stage, up to day 7. It was also found that Lactrobacillus brevis and Pediococcus pentosaceus had smaller population numbers in the first 14 days than previous studies had reported.

Back-slopping bypasses the heterofermentative stage of bacterial population dynamics, a stage which is important to developing flavor. This is due primarily to the greater initial activity of species L. plantarum. The Netherlands sauerkraut industry experienced an excessively sour product when inoculating cabbage with an old batch of sauerkraut.

Sunday, 4 November 2012

HORSERADISH & HOW TO PREPARE HORSERADISH

Armoracia rusticana
syn. Colchlearia armoracia

HORSERADISH

DESCRIPTION:Perennial growing to 50cm (20in).Has a deep root, large leaves and clusters of 4-petalled white flowers.

HABITAT& CULTIVATION:
Native to Europe and Western Asia, this herb is widely cultivated for its root, unearthed in autumn.

PARTS USED:
Root, Leaves

CONSTITUENTS:
Horseradish root contains glucosilinates (mainly sinigrin), asparagine, resin and Vitamin C. On being crushed, sinigrin produces allyl isothiocyanate, an antibiotic substance.

HISTORY & FOLKLORE:
Pliny (AD 23-79) probably had horseradish in mind when describing a plant that warded off scorpions, but formost of its long history, horseradish has been used mainly as a diuretic herb. It is a popular condiment, particularly in Britain.

MEDICINAL ACTIONS & USES:
Now undervalued as a medicinal herb, horseradish has many healing properties. It strongly stimulates the digestion, increasing gastric secretions and appetite. It is a good diuretic and promotes perpiration, making it useful in fevers,colds and flu. It is also expectorant and mildly antibiotic, and can be of use in both respiratory and urinary tract infections.A sandwhich offreshly grated rootis a home remedy for hey fever. Externally, a poultice of root can soothe chiblains.

CAUTIONS:
Over-consumption of horseradish may irrate the gastro-intestinal tract. The pants should be avoided by those with low thyroid function. A horseradish poultice may cause blistering.

HOW TO PREPARE HORSERADISH

People either love horseradishor they hate it. One bite of pungent prepared horseradish is enough to clear out anyone's sinuses. Hotter than the popular Japanese version of Wasabi, horseradish is easy to grow and easy to prepare. If youdon't have access to a garden plant,you can often find te roots at markets such as Farmers and Wholefoods Markets. Homemade prepared horseradish is about twice as strong as store-bought vrsions, and lasts about 3 to 4 weeks in the refrigerator.

Ingredients:
8-10 Long Root of Horseradish
2 tbsp Water
1 tbsp White Vinegar
Pinch Sea Salt

Method:
1. If you have access to a garden plant, use a sturdy shovel to dig up an 8-10 inch root of horseradish. (You can not pull it up). The plant itself, once etablished propagates with tublers, and is very hardy. Remove the leaves from the root and rinse the dirt off.

2. Use a vegetable peeler to peel the surface skin of the tuber. Chop into pieces.

3. Put into a food procssor. Add a couple tbsp of water. Process until well ground. At this point be careful. A ground up fresh horseradish is many times as potent as freshly chopped onion and can really hurt the eyes if you get too close. Keep at arms length away, and work ina well ventilated room. Strain out some of the water if the mixture is too liquidy. Add a tbsp of white vinegar aand a pinch of sea salt to mixture. Pulse to combine.

Note: That the vinegar will stabilize the level of hotness of ground horseradish, so do not wait too long to add it to the mixture.

4. Using a rubber spatular, carefully tranfer the grated horseradish to a jar. It will keep for 3 to 4 weeks in thee refrigerator.

FORAGING ROSEHIPS & ROSEHIP SYRUP "VITAMIN BOOSTER"

In hedgerows in autumn,there's an abundance of bright scarllet rosehips, the fruit of the wild (or dog) rose. While blackberries are quickly stripped from their stems, few people seem to pick rosehips any more. It,s a shame, not least because these tough, hard fruits can be made into a vitamin-rich syrup to kep winter coughs and colds at bay: they contain vitamins A, cand K, plus the B vitamins thiamin, riboflavin and niacin. During World War II,rosehips were collected by children and sold to chemists to be made in to syrup. It's easy to make at home: just follow the recipe. Strain the syrup well: the tiny hairs are irritating and traditionally used as itching powder,dropped by school children down their classmates backs.

GROWS/WHERE TO FIND> wild roses like damp, heavy soils
> fruit found in hedgerows in September - October
> take a stepladder when harvesting - they often grow high

An old-fashioned winter remmedy for boosting vitamin levels and keeping colds at bay. Gather the hips in October and November when they're ripe and soft. Children love this syrup, and it's good poured over pancakes, waffles, ice-cream and rice pudding.

Vitamin C-Rich Rosehip Syrup

Makes 284ml (approx1/4pt)

Ingredients:
250g fresh Rosehips
5 Cloves (optional)
1 Cinnamon Stick
OR
1 tsp All Spice
500ml Water
About 125g Sugar

Preparations:
1. Crush the rosehips slightly, and place in a pan. Add the cloves and cinnamon stick, if using, then add the water. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

2. Strain, then add the same amount of sugar as ther is liquid (about 125g). Stir until dissolved and bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Cool and filter into small, sterilized bottles.

USE: For children, give 2 tsp per day; dilute 1 part syrup to 5 parts water and drink as a cordial; or use instead of maple syrup for dishes suggested above.

STORAGE: Keeps for 1 week inthe refrigerator once opened. Unopened Keeps for up to a year.

NOTES: We made double the ingredients which made 2x 284ml bottles of Rosehip Syrup colled before putting in fridge to store

ALLOTMENT SUNDAY 4/11/2012

After a very short growing season this year, with the wettest Spring and Summer and the wettest June/July since 1926 the Potatoes and Tomatoes were ravaged by the dreaded "Blight" which destroyed most of the crops, not only on our allotments on a national level, but the farmers to have had their crops destroyed by "Blight", and many other crops which have rotted through the heavy rains. Which in turn we have not seen any Butterflies, Dragon Flies, Bees, and even the Frogs have been in decline. The flowers and plants have not been propergated properly and pollination ha not happened this year, as very little has grown this year.

Even though we had a glut of Broad beans this year the best crop in three or four years! And the Runner Beans have had quite a good glut too. Although the Peas weren't so good we had an abundance of Logan Berries wow did we, must have gathered at least about 10-15lb over the so-called summer and Indian summer. The Raspberries were no existent and the Strawberries were lush!!

Our Turkish Fig Tree wow has grown nearly three times bigger since last year with at least 20 to 30 figs growing but came to nothing with no sunshine, it was diheartening for sure, but, we will spruce her up abit and cut back the dead branches this year for spring growth. Yea! and we were given a Peach tree this year which is establishing well and hopefully will fruit next year. Our Blackcurrant bushes we rescued from neglect as was the Raspberry Canes which needed much TLC. So they have been transplanted and establishing well.

As for the overgrown Courgettes/Marrows we have turned into Chuntney and Rustic Pickle and what we would called "Marrow Hooch" a Marrow Rum Liquer. We will see what becomes of the Parnips this year which usually get turned into "Bombay Parsnip Chutney" and "Parsnip Ollarosso Sherry" for Christmas time!!

This week we have pulled our first Autumnal Carrot "Chantaney" & "Autumn King" steamed with sea-salt and and sprinkle of sugar and served with a generous know of butter.

The Greenhouse is laden with Green Sweet Pepper and Small Firey red Chilli Peppers which are still in full crop in November already and the Strawberries are Flowering again!!

So today this blessed Sunday a wander down to the allotments and what a beautiful sight to behold and the sweet scent of mother earth all the colours in the trees and leaves falling under foot. After heavy rains the earth was clumpy for our soil here in Winchester, Hampshire, is very chalky and cluggish, the soil makes good Prayer Bowls but thats another story to hare. The jerusalem Artichokes are abundant and we have started to dig them out and tilt the earth, preparing a good bed for the Autumnal White Onions and Red Onions and Garlic, and was able to cut 9 Red Cabbages so we can pickle in Red Wine Vinegar and Fennel seeds ready for Boxing Days "Bubble & Squeak" n Cold meats and cheeses, yummmmy!!!