Pickles and other reasons the summer is lovely

The ICU has been sucking away my time, so this will be somewhat brief. In fact, the title is now blatantly misleading, as I’m really only going to talk about radish pickles.
These pickles were amazing. I try to cook seasonally, and in Michigan, that means eating a LOT of vegetables in the summer, and preserving some for the winter. These were my first attempt at a recipe from the canning book I got for Christmas, although I will note that they were not actually canned. I will also note that they were so delicious that they did not need to be canned. They probably didn’t even need to be refrigerated, given how quickly I ate them (as evidenced in part by the fact that I couldn't even snap a picture before the jar was half empty). Also they were pink.

Radish Pickles
adapted liberally from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving


2-3 cups sliced radishes
2 cups white vinegar
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp whole black peppercorns
sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Place the sliced radishes in a large glass or stainless steel bowl and set them aside. Combine everything else in a saucepan, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat and let the liquid boil gently for a few minutes. Pour the liquid over the radishes, and then let it stand for about 30 minutes, or until it’s cooled to room temperature. Pack the radishes into jars, and ladle the pickling liquid over them to cover. Put the lids on the jars and refrigerate. The recipe recommends that they marinate at least two weeks and up to three months. I think I made it about 5 days, and they were all eating with two weeks. Yum.