Green Tomatoes: Yes, I Can!

I had to leave them behind. My babies, my jewels, my tomatoes.

Having booked an 8-day, out-of-state vacation back in August, I never dreamed I'd still be waiting for most of my tomatoes to ripen two days before I left in mid-October. Unwilling to leave them to the rapidly cooling Fall temperatures, I cut the tomatoes off of the plants leaving a little bit of the vine attached. The ones that had begun to blush were deposited in a brown paper bag in hopes that they would ripen while I was away. But what to do with the rest--the green "rocks" that were the considerable balance of the crop?

To call them rocks is a bit insulting. They did their best with what we were given, after all. But what to do ....fried green tomatoes? Chutney? No, pickles; firm, crunchy and slightly sweet ice box pickles!

The basic recipe (see below) is hot brine poured over cut up vegetables. I decided to toss in the handful of yellow wax and Jalapeno peppers I'd manage to grow in another Topsy Turvy planter along with some garlic. Mission accomplished, I slid nearly two quarts of green tomato pickles into the refrigerator and finished packing my bags.

Nine days later I returned to find pickles so vinegary that they were practically inedible. But I wasn't yet defeated: I strained out the pickles reserving the liquid, put them back in the jar and diluted the pickling liquid with 1/3 water. They were much better after only a day. Lesson learned: taste the pickling liquid BEFORE you pour it in. It needs to be able to stand alone.

Incidentally, the tomatoes in the brown bag were red and ready to eat by the time I returned from vacation. Though they were not a flavorful as the ones that had time to ripen on the plant, they still tasted considerably better than grocery store tomatoes. And trust me, they didn't last long. Well worth the effort.

So in conclusion, yes, it seems I can can.

BASIC ICE BOX PICKLE RECIPE

2 C white vinegar
2 C water
1/4 C kosher salt
Sugar to taste
2 T pickling spice (Schilling brand, or your choice of whole spices)
4-5 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed slightly with the flat of a knife to release the flavor
Vegetables, cubed, sliced, speared, or whole

Combine vinegar, water, salt, sugar and pickling spice in saucepan, adjusting flavors to your taste. As you bring the liquid to a boil, prepare garlic and vegetables, filling jar(s) nearly to top. Pour boiling pickling liquid over vegetables to top of jar and allow to cool before covering and placing in refrigerator.

Pickles are ready to eat after a few hours refrigeration. They will not keep indefinitely, so plan to eat them within 6 weeks.