Pickle only prime produce for those piquant dill spears A JAR of homemade dill pickles hides in the fridge, tucked carefully behind sev- eral tall bottles. Enquisitive SUE WILSON ANNE GARDINER Given to us by a friend, these crunchy fat cucumber spears are wonderful with summer barbecues, adding tang to mayon- naise-based dressings served on seafood salads. These pickles are a good reminder that crispness is impor- tant in pickling. You bite; they crunch! If your dill pickles aren*t as crisp as you would like, here are a few factors affecting their texture. Pickle only prime produce. Tender, small cucumbers make the ultimate finished product. And they're best when used within 24 hours of harvesting. fe’s unlikely that tiny pickling cukes will be waxed. But unless the cucumbers are going to be peeled, if you're using the larger variety, check for waxing. Cucumbers are not naturally highly glossed. But it’s sometimes applied for marketing purposes as it gives them greater cye appeal. Waxing also keeps cucumbers fresh longer because it seals the skin, reducing moisture loss. For pickling, wax stops the pickling liquid from penetrating the cucumber thoroughly, so Pickles may never become proper- ly cured. It’s known that the blossom end of a cucumber contains an enzyme which make pickles soften. For crisper pickles make sure that the bossom end is cut back slightly and discarded. Soaking pickles in salt water or tossing them with salt for several hours prior to processing in a pickling brine draws out interior moisture, encouraging crispness. if the water used in making the pickling brine is high in minerals (hard water), pickles may darken and soften. To make hard water softer, boil it for 15 minutes and then let it stand covered for 24 hours. Scoop away any surface skum, and carefully pour off water, leaving any sediment behind. Or use distilled water. But that adds to the cast of the pickles. Always use the amount of pickling salt specified in the reci- pe. And make sure that the vinegar is at least 5% acidity, in- dicated on the bottle label. Avoid homemade vinegars because you’re never sure of their acidity, which is essential for safe preser- vation. Again, use the amount specified because a weak brine or a weak vinegar each contributes to soft- ening. Proper processing guarantees a safe pickle. Follow recipe instruc- tions carefully as there are several alternative methods. To make sure your processing knowledge is up to date you might write for: ‘‘A Guide to Home Preserving,’’ Barnardin of Canada Lid., 120 The East Mall, Etobicoke, Ontario M8Z 5VS. Their new 128-page book costs $5, but it explains home preserv- ing well. | Diabetes cookbook makes healthy choices a reality THE CANADIAN Diabetes Association is pleased to an- nounce an exiting new cookbook for healthy everyday meal planning, with emphasis on the special needs of people with diabetes. Each recipe has been reviewed for its suitability by a team of nutritionists specializing in diabetes care. Healthy Choices: Everyday Recipes for Healthy Eating is different from other cookbooks. Many cookbook recipes are high in sugar and fat and do not include nutrient analysis or Canadian Diabetes Association food choice values. This information is important to anyone concernsd about healthy eating, and vital to people with diabetes. Healthy Choices also features an casy-to-use format — with chapter title page in- dexes, nutritional and descrip- tive symbols, and both metric and imperial measures. Recipes also reflect’ the changing lifestyles of many Canadians. Microwave and quick/mini meal recipes are in- cluded for working parents on the run and younger family members learning to cook. For those with more adventurous tastes, there’s a tasty mix of popular Mexican, Chinese, East Indian and Greek dishes. Heaithy eating is an impor- tant part of everyone's life. For the person with diabetes, pro- per meal planning is critical. Healthy Choices contains nearly 200 great-tasting, kitch- en-tested recipes. There are over 85 easy main meals, 30 quick/mini meals, 25 desserts and an exciting variety of ap- petizers, breads/muffins, soups and side dishes. Healthy Choices is available in bookstores for $19.95. In- cluded in its 250 pages are 50 color photographs. Each book sold provides funds for the Canadian Diabetes Assc-ciation. Wednesday, August 5, 199: oA ote 2 ~ North Shore News - NEWS photo Mike Wakefiald SALADS DON'T necessarily mean greens... they keep longer if you eliminate greens. Salad days HAVING A good salad for dinner is one of the best things we can do for ourselves. And I don’t mean stopping at a salad bar on the way home from work, although many of my friends do such a thing. | mean the preparation of salads that will hold up for a few days, salads that can be served one day and changed for the next. And when | talk about salads ! don't necessarily mean greens. As a matter of fact, one of the ways to keep a salad for a few days is to eliminate the greens, It is still a salad. Salads that hold up are par- ticularly helpful to those who five alone. It is boring to make a salad for oneself, then watch the lef- tovers die right in front of you. The following recipes are to be made for several persons, with leftovers being no problem at all. A family of several can enjoy a quick evening meal from one of THE FRUGAL GOURMET iN these salads, and a single person can have dinner in the refrigerator when he or she returns from work, dinner guest in hand. PASTA AND KIDNEY BEAN SALAD (Serves 4-6) This is the kind of cold refrigerated salad I really love. No, it is nothing new, but I wanted to remind you of some- thing you really used to like and somehow forgot about. This is one of those dishes. Easy to prepare and it keeps for a few days in the refrigerator. 1 cup dried red kidney beans V2 pound small pasta shells 1% cups sliced radishes 2 bunches scallions, chopped 1 cup sour cream 1 cup mayonnaise Juice of 2 lemon Ys cup and olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste GARNISH: Additional freshly ground black Pepper to taste Place the beans in a 4-quart pot and add 2 cups of cold water. Bring beans to a boil, cover and turn off the heat. Allow to stand for I hour. See Gardener's page 39