In a Pickle

Today

Popping in to our friends' house yesterday we were invited to share their lunch of cheese and biscuits. Very nice and there were also pickles. The beetroot was especially tasty "It's called "sweetfire"" explained Cherie "I think it's quite spicy." Later she drew Howard's attention to some very good fig and ginger chutney. And the Onions were pickled in balsamic vinegar.

All this complemented the Cheddar, Stilton and Camembert very nicely.

In My Day

We simply never had pickles as children. Mamma made jams and marmalade but chutneys and pickles formed no part of our diet. Occasionally Mamma would buy sauerkraut which was invariably eaten with Frankfurters, but that was it.

I sometimes saw pickles on the tables of friends houses but I think I had some idea that they were unclean foods or terribly working-class and never touched them.

When I went on school events requiring packed lunches I looked at my colleagues' food in amazement. Cheese and pickle was strange enough but some of them had sandwiches featuring something called "Picalilli". This seemed to consist of lumps of vegetables (cauliflower featured, I remember) encased in a thick sauce of a vile yellow colour. This would ooze out of the sides of the their sandwiched and I was simply revolted as I watched them eagerly eating this muck.

When I met Paul I discovered a whole new world of flavour with his Dad's home-made chutneys, and have also learnt to make and enjoy the kinds of fresh chutneys that go with Indian Cooking.

My neighbour once told me that when he was a lad he was given Cheese and beetroot sandwiches. I've tried it - delicious, sweetfire or not!