Pickle for your thoughts ~ What’s the *dill* with pickles?

Pickles! Glorious pickles! A farmer or gardener’s pantry is usually built on the back of pickles. I really do love to peek in and see the rows and rows of rainbowed jars filled with pickled goods. Pickling items is important because it helps stretch the surplus bounty of any garden, you can take almost anything that comes out of the ground and make it last well past the growing season has come and gone by pickling it. Not only are pickled food items a delicious and colorful addition to most meals, but they also bring with them certain health benefits!

First, it’s important to note that some pickles are fermented, BUT not all pickles are fermented. Pickling is an ancient method of preserving vegetables by covering them in a solution of boiling vinegar. (Fun Fact: Did you know that the earliest record of pickling goes back to 4000 BCE in India?) Some brines are fermented and some are not. Non-fermented brine is used essentially for preserving food i