Heather Terhune- Pickled Zucchini

The Botanic Garden's chef series featured Heather Terhune. The setting was the outdoor kitchen. Fortunately, the audience was able to sit on the wooden benches shielded from the hot sun with a few staggered umbrellas. But the chef was not as lucky- it was pretty hot in the kitchen! Heather's recipe was very quick and easy to prepare.

Ingredients:

1 pound Zucchini

1 small onion

2 T Kosher salt

2 cups cider vinegar

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp dry mustard

1 1/2 tsp crushed yellow and/or brown mustard seeds

Scant 1 tsp ground turmeric

Directions:

Wash and trim the zucchini. Then slice then one sixteenth inch thick; a mandoline works best. Slice the onion very thin as well. Combine the zucchini and onions in a large but shallow nonreactive bowl, add the salt and toss to distribute. Add a few ice cubes and cold water to cover, then stir to dissolve the salt. Alternatively, transfer the salted zucchini and onion slices to a Japanese pickle make and screw sown the top; do not add any water ice cubes. After about 1 hour, taste and feel a piece of zucchini- it should be slightly softened. Drain and pat dry.

Combine the vinegar, sugar, dry mustard, mustard seeds and turmeric in a small saucepan and simmer for 3 minutes. Set aside until just warm to the touch. ( if the brine is too hot it will cook the vegetables and make the pickles soft instead of crisp).

Return the zucchini to a dry bowl and pour over the cooled brine. Stir to distribute the spices. Transfer the pickle to jars, to hold the zucchini and onions  beneath the surface of the brine. Seal tightly and refrigerate for at least a day before serving to allow the flavors to mellow and permeated the zucchini, turning them a brilliant chartreuse color.

For presentation, Heather added pearl size mozzarella and some chopped dill.

Heather is the Executive chef at Sable, 505 N. State Street, Chicago