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Dilled Carrot Spears

Source of Recipe

From "Preserving by the Pint" by Marisa McClellan


Recipe Introduction

"These pickled carrots are my midwinter riff on the classic dilly bean. I make them in January, when the pickings are slim at the famers' market and I need to bring some color into my kitchen. I like to chop them and toss them into a batch of tuna salad for brightness and pucker. They're also good to make in early summer, when the true baby carrots are just becoming available."

List of Ingredients

◦ 1 pound carrots
◦ 1 cup cider vinegar
◦ 1 tablespoon pickling salt, divided
◦ 1 teaspoon dill seeds, divided
◦ � teaspoon black peppercorns, divided
◦ 2 cloves garlic, divided


Recipe

Prepare a boiling water bath and two 12-ounce jelly jars. Place two lids in a small saucepan of water and bring to a gentle simmer.

Bring to a boil a separate small saucepan of water in which to blanch the carrots. Peel the carrots and trim to fit the jars. Cut into thin sticks. When the water comes to a boil, drop in the carrots and cook for 90 seconds. Remove the carrots from the water and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Divide the spices and garlic cloves between the jars and pack in the carrot sticks on top of the spices.

Combine the vinegar, 1 cup of water, and the salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour the boiling brine over the carrots, leaving � inch of headspace. Tap the jars gently to remove any air bubbles. Add more liquid to return the headspace to � inch, if necessary. Wipe the rims, apply the lids and rings, and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.

Makes two 12-ounce jars






❧ Note: To make these without the canning step, increase the blanching time to 3 minutes. That's just enough cooking to ensure that they're tender enough to absorb the brine but still snappy. Store in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours before using.