Good news and fun stuff

Howdy peeps. Good news on the surgery front - Dad's histo reports came back showing clear lymph nodes and the margins of the tumor show that they got it all. He's recovering really well and even managed to avoid the day four blues (anesthetic leaves the system at about the same time they cut the morphine - bastards).  Thanks for all the well wishes, they have and will continue to be passed on.

We sat down to a real pickle tasting last night and I was fairly satisfied with the final results. The cumquat pickles are divine and I highly recommend that recipe to anyone who has spare fruit. They can be used in place of preserved lemons, but because they are not as salty they can also be eaten alone, as a palate cleanser or with a cheeseplate/ploughman's.

Homemade pickles: Spiced cumquat, Sichuan beetroot and miso turnip 

I also really enjoyed both the miso and Sichuan pickles. Both were salty rather than vinegary sweet like the cumquats, but both stayed really crisp. The bland turnip was a great base for the miso pickles, retaining a little sweetness to counter the rich salt of the miso bed. The beetroot pickles were a little more spicy than my first taste on day 4, but kept the sweet and earthy beet taste (so no good if you don't like beets! Use carrot maybe) Both would have worked well on a cheese board and had the same satisfying feeling that snacking on olives always provides me.

Finally, in other exciting news, keep your eyes peeled for a new blog event!! My friend and fellow food whore Gabe, who is involved with the food blog Evella, has agreed to participate in a joint cooking affair with the wabbit. The deal is that we will pick a dish or technique and both attempt it in our own way, documenting the whole affair on our blogs. Keep and eye out for the first Gabe and Jac Bloggoff tomorrow where we will be tackling the wonderful world of KIMCHI!