Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article >, "Jean B." >
> wrote:
>
>> Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>>> In article >, "Jean B." >
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>>>>> Well, I did okay at this year's State Fair.
>>>>>
>>>>> In spades!!
>>>>> I believe those awards are sufficient to garner the award for being the
>>>>> best (at least most prolific) canner at this year's GREAT MINNESOTA
>>>>> GET-TOGETHER!! You should go!!
>>>> Oh wow, Barb! That's wonderful.
>>>>
>>>> (I still think you should try those dirt chunks though.)
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Jean B.
>>> Thanks.
>>> Why? I'm thinking about mixing and selling the syrup/brine. Let some
>>> other sucker prep the beets and soak 'em in the elixir. If I were
>>> going to sell the PBDC, I'm thinking that $8-10 per pint isn't enough.
>> It is just odd to me that you are winning ribbons with something
>> you won't even taste. I forget. Did you ever taste beets? (I
>> assume so and also that it was long ago.) If so, how were they
>> prepared? Might that not have been the best way, the way that
>> would possibly appeal to you? Your beet pickles must be quite
>> nice. Perhaps you should have more faith in your ability to make
>> something palatable--even from the beets that you so despise.
>>
>> --
>> Jean B.
>
> Yeah, Jean, it's odd to me, too. :-) I could sit at the table longer
> than my mother could make me sit there when I was a kid and she put a
> bowl of borscht in front of me. Blech. My enduring memories are of the
> dirt smell when they were cooking.
>
> It is certainly possible that Mom's borscht was not the best
> presentation of beets, though she was an excellent soup maker.
>
> True confession (You'll love this, and it reinforces my opinion of
> them): A few weeks ago we were guests of the University of MN Landscape
> Arboretum for lunch. Among the items (a salad-y assortment, IIR) on the
> plate were bruschetta with diced beets atop. The beets came from the
> arboretum's kitchen garden section. What to do, what to do? As their
> guest and with nothing like Fatal Beet Allergy to fall back on I felt I
> needed to at least try it, right? I did. One bite of a 1/4" cube of
> the beet was sufficient to convince me I'm not missing a thing by my
> disdain for them. Tasted like dirt.
>
> My r.f.preserving friends have known of my aversion to them for years.
> Just for the helluva it, I decided in 2006 to enter the competition at
> the fair. When I didn't get a ribbon I was not surprised. What I
> learned when I picked up my jars at the end of the fair is that they had
> actually placed 5th (but no ribbon)! So I did it again, wanting a
> ribbon for something I'd never tasted. In 2007 they got bupkes. In
> 2008, with a different recipe, they were awarded 4th place. In 2009,
> bupkes.
>
> A friend at church said, "Oh, you have to try my recipe ‹ it will win
> for sure." Right. That's what everybody says. "Well, you haven't had
> my recipe. . . " Whatever. Anyway, I made her recipe and damn if it
> didn't win first place! I was totally flying by the seat of my pants
> because I don't know what is a good beet pickle. Are the beets fork
> tender? Are they supposed to have a little tooth? Steve Dropkin, a
> friend of ours who used to post here occasionally was my tester (after
> the fact!). He liked them. Michael Stern (the Roadfood guy) loved
> them! Whatever.
>
> I'm thinking of bottling the brine/syrup and selling it. (*^;^*) Then
> if someone wants to make them, *they* can go through the bother of
> cooking, skinning, and slicing them. I think they're a PITA to make,
> frankly. I still think their best use is in the compost heap. The
> greens are good, though, cooked like spinach. I love spinach. Love
> chard, too.
>
> My B&B pickles take time, but I can wash those in the washing machine
> and it takes maybe 5 minutes to trim the ends before feeding them to the
> food processor for slicing. I make about 3-4 batches of those without
> grousing about it.

LOL! You have it on good authority that thos dirt chunks rock,
Barb. It's really unfortunate that the only tiny bit of beet you
have eaten recently was not done in any way that disguised what
you despise about them.

--
Jean B.