PICKLED ASPARAGUS SPEARS

Prep Time: 1 Hour
Yields: 1 (32 ounce) Wide-mouth Jar

Comment:
Feel free to use this simple recipe to pickle any fresh vegetable such as green beans, okra and Brussels sprouts. The vivid green color may be enhanced with the addition of one or two julienned strips of red and yellow bell pepper. Make this recipe in small batches, however, because it keeps for only about six weeks.

Ingredients:
20 stalks asparagus spears, cleaned and trimmed
2½ cups white wine vinegar
10 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
½ tsp grated nutmeg
 
Method:
Wash asparagus in cold water, then soak in lightly salted water for 4 to 6 hours. In boiling, salted water, blanch asparagus for 1-minute. Remove and drain on a clean dishcloth allowing asparagus to cool. In a medium-sized saucepan, bring vinegar, peppercorns, bay leaf and nutmeg to a low boil. Cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool thoroughly. Pack asparagus in a sterilized wide-mouth jar, standing the spears upright. Cover with the cold vinegar mixture and seal. Refrigerate up to 2–3 weeks prior to serving.