A Recipe for Pickling Beets

With each vegetable we have pulled from the earth since early this spring, I have had that sort of giddiness that comes to the gardener when a new variety is ready for its first harvest. When it was the humble beet's turn, I had to pause in wonderment- it really was a beautiful vegetable!

This year we grew several varieties of heirloom beets, but the Bull's Blood beet was perfection. When sliced, it displayed rings in several shades of pink along with the loveliest hot pink juice color.

To make these pretty colors last into the very gray and dismal winter, I got to work.

This recipe for pickled beets is adapted from one of my new favorite cookbooks, The Farm by Ian Knauer.

Some dreamy photos from the cookbook of the farmhouse that Knauer lives in.

 

6 pounds beets
6 fresh dill sprigs
3 shallots or 3 heads garlic
3 tablespoons pickling spices
3 cups distilled white vinegar
3 cups water
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 400 F. 

Wrap beets in aluminum foil and roast until they are easily pierced with a fork. Let the beets cool, then put on some gloves, (or don't if you won't mind stained hands) and rub the skins off. Slice and divide them among 6 sterilized pint canning jars along with the dill, sliced shallots or garlic, and spices. 

Bring the vinegar, water, sugar, and salt to a boil, then pour the mixture over the beets. Leave about 1/4 inch of space at the top of each jar.

Cap jars and process in boiling water for 20-30 minutes. Remove the jars and let cool. You'll know they are sealed if you hear the little pinging noise, but you can also check by looking to see if the jar flats are indented in the middle. Keep in a cool, dark place.