Monday, July 23, 2012

Pickled Beets from Leslie Christiansen


PICKLED BEETS Leslie Christiansen
Here's an easy one:
Goat Cheese Crostini with Pickled Beets. Make the Pickled Beet recipe and dice the beets into tiny cube; drain on a paper towel.
Make the crostini. Spread with fresh goat cheese. Sprinkle with the Pickled Beets. YUM.

Ingredients:
1 lb beets, roasted and sliced
1 cup cider vinegar
½ cup water
½ cup sugar
½ t pickling spice
¼ t mustard seeds
¼ t cassia chunks
¼ t cardamom
¼ t coriander
1 bay leaf
10 pepper corns
2 T dill weed

Directions:
Place all ingredients except beets in a medium sized heavy-bottom sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.
Place the beets in a heat-proof bowl. Pour the liquid in with the beets. Allow to cool, then cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, strain the liquid. Add the liquid back into the beets, cover and refrigerate.

Ingredients for home-made pickling spice:
6 T mustard seed
3 T whole allspice
2 T coriander seed
6 whole cloves
1 T ground ginger
1 T red pepper flakes (optional)
3 bay leaves
3 cinnamon sticks

Directions:
Crush the cinnamon into pieces and crumble the bay leaves.
Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container.