This is the lovely ginger that is for sale from Old Friends Farm every Friday at the Copley Square Farmer’s Market. They recommend freezing it and using it frozen (like, grate some into your curry and pop the gingersicle back in the freezer).

I’ve said it before, but you can make an entirely local kim chi now that this ginger is available. Get yourself some cabbage, bok choi, garlic, peppers and ginger, slice, dice, chop, salt it, crush it, pack it into jars and crush until it’s submerged in its own brine. Let sit out, covered, for 3-7 days, opening periodically to resubmerge the vegetables in the brine. Then pop it in the fridge. It will continue to ferment, albeit at a much slower rate. Eat when you get home from work to purge your soul and aid digestion.

Editors Note: Please join us for a pickle tasting on Thursday, September 10 from 6-8 p.m. at the  Growing Center in Somerville. Bring pickles of any kind: homemade, naturally fermented, (local) store-bought, cucumbers, fruit, kimchi - anything you’ve pickled. We’ll be provided some, including samples from Moon Brine, Real Pickles, Rick’s Picks and our own kitchen.

New pickle horizons . . . Torshi, the Persian pickle

With two pounds of basil, a box of peaches, and an extra CSA share and a half for volunteering (and extra carrots from Ryan), the labor in Labor Day was no joke. Luckily my sister was town, so I promptly put her to work with my housemate. And why call it labor when it is so FUN? I tested out the peach chutney recipe I’ve been wanting (delish), Daniel churned out the vegan pesto (secret ingredient: nutritional yeast), and we discovered a new pickle! Torshi is the Farsi word for pickle as far as I can tell. Among the infinite spice combinations, most included some combination of tarragon, mint, basil, and dill. Here is the recipe I ended up using, though I just used the vegetables I had (carrot, beets, squash, peppers). I never found dried lime powder, decreasing the authenticity, I suppose. But hey, we’re in Cambridge, not Iran. Please.

Torshi

2 medium eggplants, peeled and chopped
2 large cucumbers, peeled and finely chopped
2 green peppers, washed, cleaned and finely chopped
3 large carrots, washed, peeled, finely chopped (steamed for 10 min.) or shredded
3 red medium onions, peeled and finely diced
1 small cauliflower, washed, finely chopped
1 small celery, washed and finely chopped
½ cup shredded white cabbage
(or five beets, fifteen carrots, six star-shaped squash, three peppers . . . you get the idea)

1 cup of each of the following herbs: (parsley, coriander, dill), finely chopped (I subbed dried for dill cause that shit’s expensive.)
2 tablespoons of tarragon, mint, basil

*2 tablespoons dried lime powder (limoo amani)
2 tablespoons crushed angelica (golpar) (Found at Harvest & Christina’s in Inman)
2 tablespoons caraway seeds (siah daneh)
2 tablespoon fennel seeds (razianeh)
2 tablespoons coriander seeds (tokhm-e geshneez)
6-7 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4-5 tablespoons salt (save this for a teaspoon a jar, not with the spice mix)
2 red hot peppers, dried or fresh, chopped
2 teaspoons turmeric

4 quarts white vinegar (white wine vinegar if you’re fancy)

Directions: Chop vegetables coarsely (half an inch sq?). Mix all the herbs in one bowl (very pretty). Mix vegs and herbs to coat all the vegs. (The recipe kept emphasizing that everything be dried off? Don’t mix any water in, I guess. All my stuff was pretty dry.) Boil the vinegar, stuff the veg/spice mix into the jars, one teaspoon of salt poured on top of veg/spices in each jar, pour vinegar over whole thing. Use your stick/spoon/something to get the air bubbles out. There is a lot of air, so wait a few minutes, then top off with more vinegar. Then process! (Sterilize jars and lids of course first, then leave in boiling water for 20 min.)

This will be a perfect pickle to have when it starts snowing, which I expect any day now.

Store jars in a cool dark place. Good for a year or so. http://yfrog.com/1ojnuj

Two beers later…remove jars carefully. http://yfrog.com/dznntj

Put lids and bands on jars and process in canner. Process 45 mins. Drink beer. Wait. http://yfrog.com/1ka1ej

Move tomatoes around in jar to remove air bubbles. http://yfrog.com/2a5frj