#pickled garlic scapes

[toysforthestateofexception]

Pickled Garlic Scapes

[i-am-l-ananas]

one of those corny hallmark style romance movies about someone from the big city falling in love with someone from the countryside but make it a vampire going to increasingly ridiculous lengths to hide their nature from a cute garlic farmer

[animalcuckllective]

Meeeeee

[thebloopixie]

Pickled Scapes

[bfgfswap]

Pickled Garlic Scapes

[meadowlarkx]

Body and Spirit

Fic/Elven food writing on pregnancy for @tolkienekphrasisweek day 2: Culinary Arts, for the theme of "bread and roses." | AO3

From the writings of an unknown Elf-scholar of the First Age, found in the ruins of Vinyamar before Beleriand’s sinking; now housed in Rivendell.

Rightly has it been written that the bearing of children takes great share and strength of one’s being. It is the duty of each faithful spouse to attend their partner carefully in this time and wait upon their needs. So the proverbs run “thou worriest like a first-time father” and “when the husband’s belly is full, the wife’s hands are never empty.” And any healer will attest that food nourishes the spirit of parent and child both, if it is prepared correctly.

In days of old, parents could rest easier: it was peacetime, and labor was effortful but always painless. Dim eyes were soon brightened by the new child’s squalling, and child and bearer both were anointed with Laurelin’s dew and garlanded with Telperion’s blooms as safeguards against dark dreaming. It is true also that Yavanna and Oromë never let expecting parents go wanting, sending servants to each threshold with fruits of field, orchard, and wood that sated more than any other. If even then Míriel’s spirit was spent and spouses fretted, how much more do they fret now, and with better reason! Yet babes go on being born as if in spite of the shadow.

Our souls are fashioned such that the mind of one spouse draws very near to the mind of the other and each knows always (if things are aright) the contemplations of the other’s inmost heart, and this is to great advantage in childbearing just as it is in child-begetting. It makes easy and unburdensome those urgent cravings that may strike one with child. Indeed a husband often knows before his wife does what it is she wishes to eat or drink, and the best spouses are ever at the elbow of their partner with this or that delicacy. My own wife once had such a wish for pickled radishes that our garden’s were finished in one Mingling, and all of the neighbors made gifts of theirs for our kitchen.

Of these desires some say that they foretell the tastes of the babe when it is grown, and others divine in them the babe’s impatience, laughter, worry, and so on. I will not here offer a full enumeration, for it seems to me each family speaks differently, and every parent is their own loremaster in this matter.

A few more words on the subject. Many have found certain cordials and tisanes soothing and strengthening for the spirit strained with child. A honeyed elderflower infusion refreshes the body, especially when chilled with ice. Dried mint, thyme, and ginger root steeped in hot water ease discomfort, and the fragrant steam brightens the spirit. As winters here bite so deeply, this last may be of most use. 

Begettings are most frequent in the Spring and thus Elves are often in childbed come Spring again. So I have striven to mark a calendar of the seasons, as well as those dishes once or now customary to be served for the health and joyful greeting of a new-growing babe and to honor and sustain the one with child. Though much is scarce, and certain plants cannot be found, new children are rare in these lands and the bearing of them is a hard thing, and a brave one. I ask readers to use every store at their disposal to make it easy and happy. Where one thing cannot be found, another of similar savor can be used in its stead.

Spring (begetting)

It is still a tradition among our people to celebrate with feasting when the child’s spirit is first felt, even if, as it may be now, only the wedded pair themselves are at the table. Sweet and savory dumplings are usually the centerpiece of this dinner. A simple dough of flour and water or egg will suffice to wrap them. Soft cheese well-salted and herbed with chopped ramp, garlic scapes, and violet leaves makes a good filling in this season. Preserved fruits and jams will suit as well.

Two things are essential in such a feast: a bowl of rich broth (each prepares it differently), to nourish the child, and a small dish of honey infused with violets, to welcome it with sweetness. Both are for the bearer of the child to drink entirely, or among the Sindar and Teleri, to be passed between both parents to the raucous encouragement of their family and friends. It is a remarkable and auspicious thing that the Elves of Middle-earth drink broth and honey to mark the time of begetting as we did in the West. Perhaps this has been our way since the days of the first awakening, though to uncover the truth of it would demand a keener mind than mine.

Summer

Summer is a time for sweets as the babe grows. The moment of quickening often occurs in late summer and may be celebrated as well. The following is the method for a cake preferred by the Vanyar that has since become popular among our people: Mix a light batter of flour, butter, egg, milk, and honey, perfumed with a spoonful of orange blossom water or rosewater, and some of the peel of a lemon; pour it into small round baking dishes that have been well oiled. Into each dish of batter, press the cut slices of exactly one peach or plum, arranged in a round to resemble the whole. (Persimmon and guava were also favored in Tirion, an you find them.) Bake in a quick oven until fragrant and golden, then cool and turn out. Scatter the tops of the cakes with rose petals.

Some among the Vanyar make a version of this sweet with a heavier dough, pressed thin and swaddled about whole fruits which are then baked so assembled. In both methods, the cakes, or depending upon whom you ask, the round fruits therein, are said to show the size of the babe at midsummer.

Autumn

The foods preferred in autumn during childbearing honor Elf and child while lending strength for the coming winter. One preparation that is very savory is to set a partridge or game hen in an artfully arranged “nest” of carrots, parsnips, slivers of apple and wild onion stalks, whichever of these are to hand, and to roast them all together until tender and browned so that the vegetables take in the bird’s juices. A lighter but very popular delicacy is that of strips of very thin dough twined into the shapes of nests or cradles. They are then filled with a mixture of stewed figs and blackberries, spiced with cardamom. The time spent upon winding such small baskets makes this task one best and most joyful shared among many hands with laughter and singing. It is ill fortune, however, if the Elf bearing the babe lays hand to such work, which ought to be done instead on their behalf.

Winter

Anyone will tell you that several foods for pregnant Elves are ever insisted upon by relatives and spouses in the cold of winter, and all the more in this land where cold numbs and freezes. One must be especially careful during this time. Yet some dishes are held to be particularly lucky or healthful. One adopted from the Falathrim is a clear stew of white fish and pickled salted greens, flecked with barley: it is oft prescribed and thought to ensure a good flow of milk after the birth, especially when tender crab’s meat is added. A porridge of as many different seeds as can be found (poppyseed, wheatberry, buckwheat, oat, walnut, and hazelnut are favorites) brings a life of plenty to the couple and the future babe. It is typically flavored with dried fruits and orange rind, and sweetened with honey.

In the past, the most devoted spouses sought fresh snows from the heights of holy Taniquetil to mix with cream, sugar, and vanilla seed. Such a simple iced confection is thought especially delectable for Elves bearing children, as it refreshes a strained body and delights the spirit. Here the winter season affords the best opportunity both to make and to relish it.

Spring (childbed)

Just as violet-steeped honey is drunk to celebrate conception, so it is again upon the table as the span of a year draws to a close and the time of childbed approaches. A draught of such honey stirred into clear springwater with crushed thyme is drunk by the Elf nearing childbed to make labor sweeter—all the more needful now that it brings such pain. Many favor also a round leavened bread of red winter wheat studded with seeds, said to be more strength-giving in the short term than lembas, and good for weariness before and after childbirth.

All must attentively wait upon the Elf who has recently undergone the trial of childbirth, providing comfort and celebration. A sweet soup of cloudy sea moss, dried fruit, and boiled dumplings filled with chopped nuts is customarily prepared by the family and specially offered to the Elf recovering abed. It is delicate and soothing to the stomach and marks something of the sweetness of this most joyous of times—before the great feasts of the child’s naming.

_____

Endnotes on AO3; say hi if you like!

[gargelyfloof118]

I just harvested garlic scapes from the garden! They are a mild garlic flavor, but definitely have some of the heat from the garlic when raw. Hubs and I both made faces at the surprise heat.

I also found a jalapeno and some radish greens! The jalapeno and majority of the scapes are going to be pickled with dill to have later. I'm going to saute 4 of the scapes with the radish tops for a "warm greens" salad for tonight's dinner.

[angelmush]

fried pickles from scratch w a homemade buttermilk ranch. i’ve fallen in love w this sauce i will be making it all summer!! it’s creamy and tangy and filled w fresh herbs, this one has the last of our spring garlic scapes and tons of parsley and fresh dill. and then i also made a mustardy lemony herby potato salad w radishes and green beans and parsley and more dill that is so bright and refreshing and delightful!!!

[epreuve-mortifiante]

Some meals my partner and I have made in the last few months. Highlights include Mediterranean chickpea pasta with garlic scape pesto, vegan paella, IKEA plant based meatballs, dill pickle and potato soup and more :)

[matineemonsters]

help I want to harvest my garlic scapes and pickle em but I can't stop myself from eating em raw and giving myself heartburn

[okayto]

Hello entities! Guess what!

My softneck garlic has all fallen over (the back end of the garden bed) so it’s time to harvest them! (The hardneck garlic, which makes up most of my crop, should be ready soon. The leaves are starting to dry, but I’m giving them a bit more time.)

(My basic garlic growing guide, for those who are interested: dashboard view; custom blog view.)

I used a trowel to loosen the dirt around/under, but pulling garlic out of the dirt is soooo satisfying. And a lot of the bulbs are a really good size!

Looks like I managed to pick them at a good time—only one bulb is showing signs of clove separation (a sign they were left too long), and even that isn’t much (it looks like just one outer clove, so maybe it’s just being weird).

These will be braided together and then hung up to cure—they are usable now, but letting them dry helps the outer paper/leaf layers toughen up and will protect the garlic so I can use it for a while.

Also, check out the size variations! Some really big, some really small, and most in the middle.

Oh! I almost forgot, I wanted to show you the scapes (from the hardneck garlic)! I harvested these last week, and some of them I left too long—they’re like 3 feet tall and very tough. I’ve stuck them in a water-filled vase for ~decoration~ and will probably try to make scape butter this year!

(So far I haven’t found something to do with scapes that I really love)

(Wait I just realized last year I pickled them and they’re still in my fridge, untested. Maybe I should try them.)

[amarguerite]

With regards to the Farmer's Market question:

Mostly specialty scones made with in-season embellishments, but with a side in hand-baked pet treats for special occasions. You'd also be the person helping organize the rescue booth, and cheering on all the rescue pups trying out agility for the first time at the special market events.

Failing the above, a specialized garlic stall, with anything from common Music to Russian Red and Spanish Roja, selling the pickled scapes (and fresh during the spring).

Ngl I would love to sell pet treats at a farmers market. Think of all the dogs I could pet!!!

[edgewaterfarmcsa]

FALL CSA WEEK 1 & 2 so belated

P I C K L I S T

october 18

carmen peppers - habanada pepper - hungarian hot wax - poblano peppers - zinnias - mizuna - red onion - garlic - cilantro - acorn squash - plum tomatoes - broccoli

BREAD OF THE WEEK: olive focaccia

P I C K L I S T

october 25

NAPA CABBAGE - CARROTS - GINGER - DAIKON RADISH - LETTUCE - SNACKING SWEETIE PEPS - CARMEN PEPPER - CAYENNE PEPPER - HABANERO PEPPER - LEEKS - PLUM TOMATOES - GARLIC - RASPBERRIES - HOUSE PLANT - CARVING PUMPKIN - FLOWERS   

BREAD OF THE WEEK: AUBERGINE BREAD

FARMY FOODIE PRO-TIPS: 

Literally meaning “sour stuff,” this is the everyday Vietnamese pickle that you’ve seen and eaten countless times in bánh mì, on rice plates, and in other dishes. Ðồ chua is typically made with daikon and carrot, but you can use jicama instead of the daikon for a crunchy-sweet result. It does require more time: You can’t massage it as it will just break apart and you need to chill the pickle 1–2 days to allow the flavors to fully develop before using. If using daikon, choose one that is dense with firm, smooth skin, which are signs that it enjoyed good growing conditions and will likely taste more sweet than bitter. Precut jicama may be sliced into matchsticks for this pickle.

Makes about 6 cups

2 lb. daikon (about 1), peeled, cut into 3x¼" matchsticks

12 oz. carrots (about 6 medium), trimmed, peeled, cut into 3x¼" matchsticks

4 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 2½ tsp. Morton kosher salt

4 tsp. plus 1 cup granulated sugar

2½ cups distilled white vinegar

Preparation

Step 1 Toss 2 lb. daikon (about 1), peeled, cut into 3x¼" matchsticks, 12 oz. carrots (about 6 medium), trimmed, peeled, cut into 3x¼" matchsticks, 4 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 2½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and 4 tsp. sugar in a medium bowl to combine. Let sit 20 minutes. You should be able to bend a piece of daikon to make the ends touch without it breaking. (If you need to speed up the process, you can massage and knead vegetables with your hands until softened, about 3 minutes.) Step 2 Rinse vegetables in a large mesh sieve or colander under running water, then press or shake to expel excess moisture. Divide between two 1-qt. glass jars or airtight containers. Step 3 Stir 2½ cups distilled white vinegar, remaining 1 cup sugar, and 2 cups lukewarm water in a medium bowl until sugar is dissolved. Pour into jars to cover vegetables; reserve any excess for making salad dressing (you may have about 1 cup liquid left over). Cover and let sit at least 1 hour at room temperature. Drain before using. Do ahead: Vegetables can be pickled 1 month ahead. Chill.

BAECHU KIMCHI BY MORIHOUSE (@mori.house)/ Makes about one 750ml mason jar

1 large Napa Cabbage**, about 1kg/2lbs

Sea Salt (non-iodized), fine to semi-fine- 3% the weight of the Napa Cabbage

3-5 GARLIC cloves, thinly sliced

zest of 1 Lemon, sliced into thin slivers

2 dried Togarashi Chili Peppers or Chile de Arbol, chopped (deseeded, optional)

3-5 cloves Garlic, crushed into a paste

3-5 Tbsp Gochugaru (Korean Chili Pepper Flakes)***

1 Tbsp Fish Sauce (optional)

Pickling Brine* or Filtered Water

JENNY’S NOTE: 

OTHER CSA CROPS TO ADD TO THIS KIMCHI RECIPE JULIENNED CARROTS/ SLICED DAIKON RADISHES/ MINCED OR GRATED GINGER

Supplies:

1x Mortar & Pestle

1x Large Mixing Bowl

2-3 Spoons for mixing

1x 750ml sterilized, air-tight Mason Jar

1x Knife or Cleaver

1x Heavy object like a large stone or a large mason jar filled with water for weighing down your pickles.

1x Dish Towel

1x Small jar or pitcher for collecting excess brine

1x Fork or utensil to press down the pickles into the jar

Prepare the garlic scapes, lemon zest and chili peppers as described. Cut your cabbage into 1/8ths lengthwise and then widthwise into approximately 3 inch chunks. (JENNY’S NOTE: Add your julienned carrots, sliced radishes, grated ginger here to the mix)

Place into a large bowl and scatter the salt, lemon zest, garlic and chili peppers over the cabbage. Gently massage the salt into the cabbage mixture evenly. As you are doing this, you will feel the cabbage excrete its water content. This will take just a few minutes.

Next use a plate or another round flat object which has a smaller circumference than the bowl, so it fits just inside rim and on top of the cabbage mixture. Using a large stone, mason jars filled with water or another heavy object, weigh the plate and cabbage down. Cover the top of the bowl with a towel to keep dust from getting in and let it sit weighed down like this for at least 3 hours to lightly pickle. After the 3 hours or more have elapsed, you will find the water from the cabbage will have filled the bowl to cover the kimchi in what is now a salty *pickling brine.

Decant the brine into a pitcher or jar and gently squeeze a little out of the cabbage mixture. At this stage you will have a fresh, lightly-pickled style of napa cabbage known in Japan as “Hakusai no Tsukemono”. If you don’t like spicy, you can skip ahead to the jarring stage.

Crush your garlic into a paste with a mortar and pestle and a couple pinches of salt to break it down easier. Add your gochugaru, fish sauce (if using) and using small amounts of the brine, make a paste similar in thickness to a tomato paste. Chuck this paste into the drained cabbage mixture, still in the original bowl, and massage all together, making sure the paste is distributed evenly.

Use the following final steps for both the spicy and non-spicy versions: Layer your kimchi into the mason jar in 3-4 stages. Between each layer, use a fork to gently press the kimchi down as flat as you can. Continue to do this until all the kimchi is in the jar. Give it a few more presses with a fork, getting as much oxygen and as many air bubbles out as possible. If your kimchi paste was the right consistency, brine will rise to the top as you press the air out of the kimchi. If not, add small amounts of brine until it does. If making only non-spicy Kimchi, you will definitely need to add some brine. This extra thin layer of liquid at the top will help to seal your kimchi during the beginning of the fermentation process. Seal the jar and place it in the coolest and darkest part of your home.

Next is the waiting! 1 MONTH is the sweet spot but while it may not be for everyone, do try to wait at least 5-7 days before tasting. It takes at least this long for there to be any noticeable fermentation. In the colder seasons, it may take even longer, up to 10 days. If you want to “taste-as-you-go”, be sure to use a clean utensil and DON’T double dip! However long your preferred fermentation time, you will need to help the kimchi release carbon dioxide gas every couple of days. You may notice that when you open it, the kimchi will bubble. Sometimes it will bubble like soda but it may also only bubble slightly or barely at all. Either way, you can rest assured that it is fermenting. Each time you release the gas, you will also notice the kimchi may have risen slightly. Using a fork press it down again as much as you can. Brine may or may not rise to cover the kimchi at this stage and that is ok.

Note: Depending on whether or not you sterilized your jar properly and the environment temperature, you may occasionally find trace amounts of white, blue or green mold on the top of your kimchi. DO NOT worry about this. Simply remove it from the kimchi or wipe it off if it is on the jar or lid. However, if you find black mold, I’m sorry to say your kimchi may have been contaminated by unwanted outside bacteria. At that stage, it is better to start over just to be safe. All this said, mold is highly unlikely using this method.

After 1 month (or shorter) has elapsed, enjoy your kimchi as a side to most of your favorite Asian dishes, cook it in a dish or eat it as a snack!

**Do not use standard or savoy cabbage to substitute. However, you can use Bok Choy (same weight) as a substitute if Napa Cabbage is nowhere to be found.

***Note: I have had some students use Cayenne Pepper, Paprika or Chili Powder in lieu of Gochugaru before, but please use caution as the spice levels between these differ substantially. If you are absolutely unable to get Gochugaru and still want to try making spicy kimchi, start by making your paste with just one tablespoon of one of these substitutes. Taste it first, then add more, tablespoon by tablespoon until you reach a spice-level which is tolerable for you. However, I suggest you do try to add Gochugaru as a regular item in your kitchen. It is very versatile and easy to find online or at Asian Markets.

[bobcat-pie]

now that i've experienced pickled garlic scapes i really want to chew through charging cords

[dumbhero]

i want garlic scapes . pickled garlic scapes.

[jazzeria]

My first time making lacto-fermented dill pickles!

In Winnipeg, local pickling cucumbers became available in early July. I bought a few pounds to try pickling.

Some of the pickles were quite large, so to help them fit, I cut them into quarters.

I'd never made nor eaten this type of pickle before, so I decided to try different seasoning combinations. The base recipe (left) contained: yellow mustard seed, black peppercorns, coriander, cloves and scapes/flower of garlic; and dill seed, leaves, and flowerheads. The middle jar doesn't have coriander. The right-most jar also contains grated and salted horseradish which I froze in fall.

Unfortunately, the horseradish flavour did not survive the freezer, and was barely detectable in the finished product.

After a few hours in the brine, the cucumber skins turned an unbelievably bright, deep green, which was surreal to see! This happens as the acidity increases and microbes begin eating the surface of the cucumbers.

On day 3 or 4, the brine turned cloudy, which happens as lactic acid is produced. I've read a few different explanations for the cloudiness:

It's the high density of active, living microbes

It's the high density of dead microbes still suspended in the solution

It's lactic acid (I don't really believe that)

Numbers 1 and 2 seem the most plausible, because the cloudiness clears up a little after a few days, and a whitish sediment can be seen settling. If #3 were true, that wouldn't explain why the brine clears up after a few days.

Because this was my first time, I wasn't sure whether I wanted to make "half-sours" or "full-sours".

Half-sours are fermented for about 4 days. The pickles still have a whitish (or marbled) flesh, instead of being uniformly translucent.

Full-sours are fermented for about 7 days or longer. The flesh is more uniformly translucent. In order to match this longer ferment time, the salinity is typically increased (compared to half-sours). But hypothetically, you could use the same salt content and just ferment longer--at the risk of a softer (less crunchy) pickle--which is what I did.

Here in Winnipeg, with a room temperature below 23C (air conditioned), the quartered cucumbers reached half-sour by about Day 3-4:

And the intact cucumbers reached half-sour by about Day 5-6:

These half-sours were mild, but still pleasingly crunchy!

Putting them in the fridge on Day 6 didn't halt the fermentation soon/fast enough, and these pickles turned full-sour in the fridge, and got a little softer. So my next batch of intact cukes will go in the fridge on Day 4 or 5.

I've also learned that I want a really dilly dill pickle, so I should add more dill than I think I need! I wonder if toasting the dill seed will alter the flavour of the finished product very much?

The taste was different from storebought garlic dill pickles (vinegar-pickled) that I've tried. The acidity was less harsh, for one! There was also an additional flavour, which I guess was the "fermented cucumber" flavour. It's difficult to put my finger on what that means exactly.

The quartered pickles got a little soft, so I minced them and will be turning them into relish (a future blog post, once I've figured out a recipe!).