Pickled Cherries

Talk about an interesting pickle! Sweet, sour and lightly spiced, this pickle has made a welcome home in our preserve pantry. They're definitely unusual but delicious nonetheless. I used allspice in all the jars to flavour them, but also made a few jars with clove and black pepper, and a few with whole vanilla beans as well. So far we've only tried the clove, black pepper and allspice but the next jar we open will definitely be the vanilla.

Spicy Dilly Beans

This is one of the first preserves of mine that I've tasted so far this season (other than jams) and I'm in pickle heaven! I've never eaten pickled green beans before let alone made them, so this was all very new to me. However I do really love pickles in general and could never say no to a green bean put in front of me so it really just made sense.
They're crispy, salty, sour (everything that makes a perfect pickle) plus they're really spicy, which just takes them to the next level of snacking.

Pickled Radishes

As the farmers markets fill up with fresh local produce it doesn't take long for this housewife to start thinking of the pickling and preserving opportunities.
I'm in need of a few new tools before I fully embark on the canning mayhem that will eventually consume my kitchen this summer. So until then I'll be making lots of "refrigerator" pickles that aren't shelf stable and will last about a month or two in my fridge. If they last that long without being eaten...

If you love radishes and have never had a pickled one, you need to make a jar of these little pink beauties right away.