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Fermented Beverages

 

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What's New

Scott Mansfield who taught our Fermented Beverages class this past spring, is putting the final touches on his new book, Strong Waters- A Simple Guide to Making Beer, Wine, Cider and Other Spirited Beverages at Home.

We were able to get a sneak peak at some of the photos from the book, they are absolutely stunning. Scott invited us to a tasting where we sampled several of the recipes that are included in the book. Delicious! I can’t wait to make them at home.

Strong Waters: A Simple Guide to Making Beer, Wine, Cider and Other Spirited Beverages at Home will be available in February 2010 but you can pre-order now on Amazon! (We've already ordered ours!)

 

 

Upcoming Classes

We are working on next class, check back soon or join our mailing list and you will receive our next class announcement.

 

Recent Class

Our most recent class was Pickling: Quick, Canned and Fermented with Michelle Furest and Ingrid Pankonin at Hands On Gourmet.

Throughout the evening as we learned all about three methods of making pickles we snacked on Salame Pepato from Boccalone, sipped wines from Dacalier and Fog Hill Wineries and Michelle passed out samples of pickles from her private collection.

 

Recipes from Michelle Fuerst

Quick Dill Cucumber Pickles
makes about 3 quarts

5 pounds of pickling cucumbers
1 onion
1 head of garlic
a handful of dill
a few chilies

for the brine:
2 cups white wine vinegar or cider vinegar
8 cups water
1/2 cup salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon mustard seed
1 tablespoon coriander seed
1 teaspoon black pepper
a pinch of celery seed

Note: If the cucumbers need to be refreshed, soak in a brine of 10 cups waters and 1/4 cup salt for at least 8 hours. This will drain the cucumbers of some of their water and make them more crunchy!

Wash and cut cucumbers into halves or quarters. Slice onion into half moons. In a non reactive pan, combine vinegar, water, salt, sugar and spices and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir occasionally to ensure that the sugar and salt dissolves.

Pour hot brine over cucumbers and onions. Cool to room temperature and then cover and refrigerate. May be eaten immediately but best if allowed to absorb flavor over a day or so.

Adapted from Charlene Cannard

 

Fermented Dill Pickles
Fermented Dill Pickles

recipe for one gallon crock

4 pounds of fresh and firm pickling cucumbers
3 to 4 heads flowering dill or a large handful of fresh dill
2 heads garlic
a pinch of black peppercorns
a pinch of coriander seeds
a handful of fresh grape, cherry, horseradish or oak leaves

 

Wash cucumbers gently and remove blossom ends. If necessary, refresh cucumbers in ice water for up to 24 hours.
for the brine:
1/2 gallon water
6 tablespoons sea salt

Mix salt and water and stir until dissolved. In a clean crock or plastic container, place, garlic, dill, leaves, black pepper and coriander. Add cucumbers to the crock and pour brine over them.  Weigh cucumbers down with a plate to make sure they are fully submerged. If you need more brine, make and add more. Cover crock with a cloth to keep out undesirables and store in a cool place.

The Next Few Days of Fermenting: Check crock everyday and skim any surface mold. If there is mold, rinse plate and replace. Skimming for mold is important because you don’t want your brine to pick up any unwanted flavors. Continue to check the crock and taste the pickles.

After one to four weeks, pickles will be fully sour. Once desired sourness is achieved, move them to the refrigerator to slow down fermentation.

Adapted from Sandor Katz

 

Bread and Butter Pickles

makes about 12 quarts

4 gallons + 4 cups sliced pickling cucumbers
6 gallons water
4 cups salt
1 gallon thinly sliced onions

Wash and slice cucumbers into 1/8 inch disks. Dissolve salt into water and soak cucumbers in salt water for 24 hours. Drain and reserve.

for the brine:
5 quarts cider vinegar
5 quarts sugar
1/4 cup turmeric
1/2 cup yellow mustard seed
1/4 cup celery seed
1/4 cup cracked black pepper

Combine vinegar and sugar and let dissolve over low heat (do not boil).  When sugar is dissolved stir in the spices. Add onions and drained cucumber slices.

Stir all the ingredients gently together and bring up to a simmer.  Turn off heat and ladle into hot canning jars.  Wipe the rim and softly tighten top.  Place jars into boiling water, making sure the top is covered and the glass jars are lifted from the bottom of the pot.  Boil for ten minutes, remove the jars from the water and let cool at room temperature. May be eaten immediately but taste best when allowed to age for at least two weeks.  Will keep for 1 year or more.

Adapted from Linnton Hopkins 

For follow up questions for Michelle and Ingrid go to our Facebook Fan Page

For more images from the pickling class check our our Blog entry.