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I've been hanging out in the library again, reading Nathan Mhyrvold's Modernist Cuisine.  It's a six-volume encyclopedia of Modernist Cuisine, the foodie phenomenon resulting from the marriage of food and technology.  The books take a sober and scientific approach to food, but also a lush and seductive coffee-table-book giant-color-photograph approach.  The set cost about $650 when it first came out and they are down to a bit over $400.  I've been reading them at the library where they live in the reference room. Periodically while reading I'll take some notes or take a photo of the page.  The page above has two recipes on it.  The first one is for garlic cloves and olive oil in a mason jar, in...

We made pickles  Kirby cucumbers are right for pickling.  They are cheap and in season right now.  Pickling is easy, the hard part is getting the jars together.  I use whatever I have around and it usually works out.  A funnel helps but you can do without.   You can use the same method on radishes, carrots, most any other vegetable. The idea of pickling is to submerge the thing to be pickled in salty water for a period of time.  Submerging is essential, otherwise any of the vegetable that is un-submerged will mold.  You can fill a plastic bag with brine and place it on top of the vegetables to keep them submerged.  The jars I used have tapered tops...