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| Photo Credit: Burpee Seeds |
It's 2022 and I am making my way through some of my blog posts, checking for blatant errors, updating, and trying to provide practical information I have learned over the years using these recipes. In 2017, I posted here Treva's Pickled Beets, a recipe I received from my mother-in-law. With the high vinegar content in the recipe, I am certain it meets the USDA guidelines for canning.
I am also including the recipe I currently use which I have named Stella's Pickled Beets. I am so pleased with the beauty, quality, and taste of these beets, but be warned that this old recipe most likely does not meet USDA guidelines. I hope you will read the posted story that accompanies this recipe
Treva's Pickled Beets
Wash young beets and cook until tender. Peel and cut into the desired size. Small beets can be left whole. Heat one quart of vinegar, two cups of sugar, and one teaspoon of salt to make a sweet brine. Put beets in syrup and allow them to come to a boil. Pack beets in sterilized, glass, canning jars. Cover beets with syrup leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe the rims of the jars to make sure they are perfectly clean. Place lids and rings on the jar, screw down finger tight, and process for 10 minutes in a hot water bath canner.
Note: If you are unfamiliar with hot water bath canning, you can find instructions at this link from the National Center for Home Food Preservation.
Recipe for Homemade Pickling Spice
2 Tablespoons Whole Mustard Seed
1 Tablespoon Whole Allspice
2 teaspoons of Coriander Seeds
2 crushed Bay Leaves
2 Cinnamon Sticks broken in half
2-6 whole cloves
2 Tablespoons Black Peppercorns
October 4, 2022
Often when we think of Appalachia, at least historically, we conjure up images of Old Granny women with their folk remedies and what many would consider superstitious ideas. Perhaps we easily dismiss this as a part of bygone history from a geographic location that many love to exploit but don't take the time to understand. Occasionally, those of us fortunate enough to call these mountains our home may stumble across a tiny piece of history that takes us back to an era that is fast fading away and captured only by the interpretation of someone who takes the time and makes the effort to share the events with others. And while I know very little about Stella, her story grabbed my attention.
My friend Carolyn who fought valiantly but recently lost her battle with pancreatic cancer was unable to process her garden beets due to her failing health. She asked me if I would use her friend Stella's recipe and pickle her beets taking half for my effort. I was happy to do so, returning all the beets to her and saving only one jar so that I could try them for myself. Carolyn had shared with me that Stella was probably eighty years old when she shared her recipe with Carolyn who received it approximately fifty years ago. It is very likely that the recipe is a hundred years old or more and it comes from the kitchen of one who was gifted. Now when I say she was gifted, I am not speaking of her abilities in the kitchen. Rather, that term was used by my friend to describe Stella's ability to heed the inner voice that we sometimes describe as divine intuition. Others might call this practice divination, granny magic, or superstition and others might dismiss the idea completely. The fact remains that Stella's ability to predict the unpredictable was manifested to my friend Carolyn on more than one occasion and in personal ways. One of the ways it was manifested was when Stella described to Carolyn the man that would later become Carolyn's husband of more than 30 years and predicted before they ever met that they would be a couple. Though I never met Stella, I am intrigued by her story and wish that I knew more about her. While I do not have much of Stella's story, thanks to my friend Carolyn, I do have her recipe for pickled beets. Recipes are not just simple instructions for making food, rather they are pieces of history passed from person to person. Recipes are meant to be shared as well as the stories that surround them. Stella's mystical story is incomplete to me, but sharing her recipe provides a link to the past and a piece of Appalachian history.
Stella's Pickled Beets
Use young, tender beets with tops, and approximately 1/2 bushel. Cut tops off, leaving 2/5 inches of the top on the beet. (This keeps the beets from bleeding out all their color while cooking and leaves a beautiful finished product.) Wash thoroughly. Boil the clean beets until the skin becomes soft and will rub off easily. Peel and quarter the beets (or leave them whole for smaller beets).
Mix the following:
8 Cups Water
5 Cups Vinegar
4.5 Cups Sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 Tablespoons of pickling spice tied in a cheesecloth (or similar cloth like flour sack or t-shirt material) and dropped into the vinegar/water/sugar mixture
Add beets to the mixture and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Discard the bag of pickling spices. Put beets into clean, sterilized pint canning jars and cover with the vinegar mixture. Wipe the rims of jars and apply lids and rings. Tighten rings on jars to just finger tight, cover with hot water and bring water to a rolling boil. Allow jars to process in a water bath canner for 10 minutes.