Food & Wine (August/September 2014)
We like our cheeseburgers pretty simple: Ketchup, lettuce, mustard, pickles. Onions if we're feeling fancy.
And we can't wait to try a cheeseburger topped with these Bread-and-Butter Zucchini Pickles.
For one thing, they combine two of our favorite cheeseburger toppings into one -- and goodness knows we appreciate convenience.
For another thing, these pickles are just plain delicious.
As you probably know, we love pickles of all sorts: beets, watermelon rinds, even regular ol' refrigerator cucumber pickles. We love 'em. (And don't even get us started on the Squash Pickles that Zach's mom makes and sends to us. Clay in particular has been known to cut anybody who tries to disturb him while he's eating those Squash Pickles...)
But neither of us can ever remember having such a mustardy pickle as these zucchini pickles from Food & Wine. Thanks to the mustard powder and mustard seeds, along with the turmeric, these pickles have a wonderful mustardy zing that's perfectly complemented by the apple cider vinegar.
We've enjoyed noshing on these pickles this week, but as we said, we're dying to try them on a cheeseburger. Maybe this weekend!
Are you as much of a pickle fiend as we are? Got any favorite recipes -- or favorite ways to use pickles once you have them? Let us know in the comments!
Bread-and-Butter Zucchini Pickles
Food & Wine (August/September 2014), recipe by Tara Derr Webb
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(This photo: Con Poulos/Food and Wine)
ACTIVE: 30 MIN
TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 30 MIN PLUS OVERNIGHT PICKLING
SERVINGS: 1 QUART
INGREDIENTS
1 pound very firm medium zucchini, sliced crosswise 1/8 inch thick
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
3 tablespoons kosher salt
Ice water
1 1/2 cups unfiltered apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons brown or yellow mustard seeds, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, toss the zucchini and onion with 2 tablespoons of the kosher salt. Cover with ice water and let stand until just softened, about 45 minutes. Drain the zucchini and onion well and pat dry.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of salt with the vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, mustard powder, turmeric and 1/2 cup of water. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar; let cool completely.
Transfer the zucchini and onion to a 1-quart glass jar and pour in enough brine to cover. Seal with the lid and refrigerate overnight before serving.
