Anyone familiar with this blog, knows that I love pickles. I think homemade pickles should be in every serious home cooks repertoire. You’ll be rewarded with tangy-sweet and crunchy snacks that are delightful and with far more variety than you will find in your typical supermarket.
This appealing recipe comes from Food & Wine magazine. Beautiful beets along with wedges of red onion and hard-boiled eggs are quickly “pickled” in a simple brine with whole peppercorns and fresh dill. The onion and eggs take on the bright color of the beets, making this a gorgeous salad. I adore eggs in any form and never having had one pickled, I had to try this recipe.
The pickles are ready to eat in 24 hours, after a brief soak in the brine. Serve them as a simple salad alone or with pretty greens, or scattered on a platter with chunks of feta cheese nudged between the beets and onions.
Pickled Beets, Red Onion & Eggs
Adapted from Food & Wine magazine
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 small red red beets
4 large eggs
1 small red onion
6 dill sprigs
1 cup raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
3 small crushed garlic cloves
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds (optional)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
Preparation
Scrub the beets and wrap in foil. Roast for 1 hour at 425°. I used my handy toaster oven. Peel and quarter the beets.
Place 4 eggs in a small pot, cover with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil and immediately turn the heat down to medium. Set a timer and let the eggs gently simmer for 10 minutes. Drain immediately and rinse under cold water. Peel the eggs when you are ready to add them to the pickle brine.
Slice onion into small wedges (about 8).
In a saucepan, simmer the vinegar, water, garlic, sugar, peppercorns, mustard seeds if using, and salt. Stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Let cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes or so.
In a 1-quart glass jar (you might need a larger jar depending on the size of your beets) layer the beets, onion, hard-boiled eggs and dill springs. Cover with the pickling liquid. Refrigerate overnight.
***The longer the eggs are in the brine, the more color they will absorb from the beets. I prefer to keep part of the eggs white so I add the eggs to the brine no more than 24 hours before serving. You can make the pickles a few days in advance and add the eggs to the jar when you are ready. If you’ve eaten all the eggs and still have beets and onions, boil more and add to the brine!
