Slices of Life

This time of year always makes me think of the renewal of life. Flowers bloom, chicks hatch and the baby Jesus grows a beard and ascends into heaven. There are abundant symbols of this time of renewal and my favorite ones are filled with marshmallow and wrapped in pretty, pastel foil but naturally I found a pickle that's also perfectly appropriate for a spring time ritual.

Rick's Picks offers several varieties of pickled goods-green beans,beets,okra and green tomatoes, but since I like to focus only on pickled cucumbers this time I'm talkin' about the Slices of Life pickles. I'm eating these pickles right now and I can't help but be reminded of Christmas? I know it's Easter/Passover but these pickles taste just like Christmas/Hannukah!

I'm no stranger to Christmas pickles but this is the first pickle I've encountered that actually TASTES like Christmas. The label only says "pickling spices" but I'm guessing there is clove in there. I actually had to call my mother and ask her what the hell is in that stuff she keeps in a crockpot during the holidays because these pickles taste just like that! She said it was just an orange and some cloves and sometimes a little cinnamon and that most people call it "Mulling Spices". I googled "mulling spices" and only found out that in urban slang it means "crack and weed".

It sounds crazy to describe a pickle with a cinnamon/clove taste and at first bite I thought they were odd, but I just kept eating them trying to figure out what they hell they tasted like and the next thing I knew the jar was empty. That's exactly what makes Ricks Picks so cool, I don't think you'll find any of his varieties to be exactly what you think they are going to be. You may not like everything he does, but you've got to admit he's doing something different.

Rick Field, of Ricks Picks, lives right here in Brooklyn and pretty much lead the way for other awesome Brooklyn picklers like Wheelhouse Pickles and McClure's Pickles. He's won numerous awards and has even been deemed worthy of sharing camera time with Martha Stewart. I checked out the website before writing this and saw how handsome he was but, no, I haven't looked up his home address...yet...and I also saw that he is celebrating his 5 year anniversary of Ricks Picks. I moved here 5 years ago? Coincidence?

So let's celebrate (slices of) life, spring time and the rebirth of the pickle movement...oh and Jesus if you're so inclined!

Fine Print (Details)

My friend David in Memphis sent me this article from Details Magazine today. I know it's a little hard to read and I spent about 2 minutes online trying to find the link but I gave up. So let me just read the fine print for you.






First of all it declares that "Pickling, once used to make fruits and vegetables last through barren winters, has officially gone from homespun necessity to highbrow obsession."

That's right, HIGHBROW. So if making pickles is now a highbrow obsession, what does that make talking about a highbrow obsession? I guess I just went from "crazy" to "passionate".

To the left is a list of the best jarred varieties of cucumbers, green beans, carrots, etc. Congrats to MY FAVES McClure's Pickles for best pickled cucumbers and to all the others as well, Rick's Picks, Wheelhouse Pickles and Real Pickles, all of which are linked to right here on Pickle Freak...except for a new one to me, Tillen Farms. I checked them out and while they don't have a straightforward pickle variety they DO offer pickled sweet bell peppers...ummmmm...highbrow!

Don't be Alarmed

The New York Times paid me a great compliment last week by writing a little number on the disappearing pickle places on the Lower East Side just like I did just a few days (or has it been weeks?) ago.

I'd like to point out that my piece has a much more optimistic tone to it than the Times'...I mean, Pickling the FINAL PICKLE? Don't we have enough in our lives to cause alarm? Do we really need headlines like THIS on a Sunday Morning?

Don't let these tactics scare you. There are plenty of pickles out there and if there weren't I'd be the first to let you know.