American Food Friday- Pickles

When my friend Judith from Umbria got all hot and bothered about Beppe Bigazzi hating American Food, she asked fellow food bloggers to participate in bringing some of our own favorite foods into the spotlight and her Buona Cucina Americana
“American Food Fridays” was born! Check out the other bloggers as we post on!

my bread and butter pickles

I really do not feel so American, my mom was raised in Shanghai with a Russian mother and a French father, who was born in Paris of a English mother and a Turkish father, but I guess when we all look at our roots, there are very few Americans.

We grew up on curries, chinese stirfries, bagels, borcht and French pancakes and an occasional TV DINNER, fish sticks, triscuits and wheat thins.

I just returned from New Orleans where I discovered “another” America, influenced by African slaves, French and Spanish invaders. Creole and Caju foods didn’t come to California until the late 80’s!

So what is American?

For me, many of our sauces and condiments make our cuisine.
I often like to make Poppyseed salad dressing and a raw spinach salad with fried pancetta.

A good bagel now and then.

A GREAT hamburger!

When I get nostalgic for “American” food I look to my bible that I brought with me in 1985, when I decided to move here after my first stay in 1984.

The Fanny Farmer Cookbook has it all!

I have the version that was revised by Marian Cunningham in 1979. I was lucky enough to have met Marian when I was working in a 5 star hotel in San Francisco, the Stanford Court Hotel.
She was James Beards right-hand woman for the cooking classes we held at the hotel.

When I told her my dream to come to Europe and study had been laughed at by the owner of the hotel, as I was” too old” to go to hotel school in Switzerland, she encouraged me on.
She herself got a late start and told me to go for it, and here I am, almost 25 years later.

So when I thought of something AMERICAN….I first wanted to make some bar food, which to me is where I go as soon as I go home, either for sushi, a margarita or a martini and snacks.

My first thought was Buffalo Wings, but I will save those for my next recipe.
( I was so dumb I asked which part of the buffalo were the “wings”.)

While I was in New Orleans, I saw beignets, muffaletto sandwiches and fried okra. Is that American? Fried Chicken yes! Gumbo and Jambalya I had never seen that on a menu.
As in Italy, America is also regional in many ways. But every trip home I need a hamburger with everything. Coast to Coast I can find one anywhere. I had a fabulous hamburger and it was served with pickles, something I never get here and love.

I started making my own Bread and Butter Pickles years ago, and continue yearly as they are so popular with my Italian friends too.

I add them to tuna salads and serve with boiled beef dinners.
Sliced tomatoes with the kick of the sweet and sour is summer to me.

Bread and Butter Pickles
Makes 4 pints about 4 1/2 liter jars.

I love these pickles. I am not one for waiting for my food, so this quick and easy version gives almost instant satisfaction!
From the Fanny Farmer Cookbook

6 cups thin-sliced cucumbers
1 pound ( 450 gr) red onions, thinly sliced
1 bell pepper ( I used yellow) thinly sliced
1/4 cup sea salt ( sale grosso)

2 cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp tumeric
1/4 tsp mustard seed
1 tsp celery seed
2 cloves
2 cups white wine vinegar

Place the sliced vegetables in a bowl and toss with salt.
Let sit for three hours.

Bring the vinegar and the other ingredients to boil for 5 minutes.

Drain the vegetables and rinse off in cold water and add to infused vinegar.
Let cook until it returns to a boil and then turn off.

Place the vegetables in sterlized glass jars and cover with hot pickling liquid.
When I finish my pickles I recycle the liquid and make more pickles!

Io amo pickles!


Il gusto dolce forte e’ perfetto con carne alla griglia e gli hamburgers “of course”.
Provare con le fette di pomodori rossi maturi, per me, sa d’estate!

Noi li mettiamo nella nostra insalata di tonno al posto dei capperi,
che poi sono un tipo di pickle, sotto aceto.

6 tazze- 1 kilo/ cetrioli tagliati fine
450 gr cipolla rossa, tagliata fine
1 peperoni, Io preferisco i gialli o rossi non verdi
1/2 tazza sale grosso

1/2 kilo zucchero di canna
pizzico di curcuma
1 cucchiaino semi di senape
1 cucchiaino semi di sedano
2 chiodi di garofano
1/2 litro aceto di vino biano ( o di mele)

Mettere la verdura tagliata in una ciotola con sale e mescolare bene.
Lasciare per 3 ore.
Il sale tira fuori l’acqua e fa diventare le verdure croccanti.

Far bollire l’aceto con lo zucchero e gli altri ingredienti per 5 minuti.

Scolare le verdure e sciaquare in acqua fredda.

Aggiungere le verdure al liquido bollente e far cuocere, finche’ il liquido non torno a bollire.
Spengere subito.

Levare le verdure dalla pentola e metterle in un barattolo sterilizzato.
Coprire con il liquido della cottura.

Servire freddo.
Buono con bollito misto, carne alla griglia, un buon hamburger!