Good morning. Today’s edition covers how to make pickles with any flavor profile and then which dishes are improved by a pickle garnish. We’re curious:

PICKLING FRAMEWORK 🍳

How to pickle anything

Today we’re revisiting the important pickling framework, which is a newsletter-exclusive framework.

• Note: this method is for quick pickling, which is different from canning and preserving vegetables long term. Quick pickles should be consumed within a few weeks in the fridge.

Pickling Liquid Framework

• 1 part water

• 1 part vinegar

• 2% total salt (by weight of the pickling brine)

• Optional flavor adjusters: sugar, whole spices (bay leaves, peppercorns, mustard seeds, star anise, etc), garlic cloves, & herbs (dill, tarragon, fennel, etc).

Notes:

• You can use almost any vegetable, but firm ones usually work best for texture (like carrots, cauliflower, green beans, and peppers). Cut them however you want and add them to a jar.

• The pickling liquid base is just a starting point. You might want your pickles more or less acidic/salty. Adjust the ratios to your preference. Sugar is commonly added to sweeten and balance the pickles. Experiment with different kinds of vinegar and flavor adjusters.

• The fastest method is to bring all pickling liquid components to a boil, and then pour over the jarred vegetables, making sure to completely cover them. In a few hours, you’ll have quick pickles.

  • If you’re not in a rush, however, you don’t need to boil the pickling liquid, it’ll just take a few days to reach the same texture and flavor infusions.

Learn more about pickling and other cooking techniques on our Fundamentals pages:

RECIPE RECCOMENDATIONS🥡

Upgrade these with pickled vegetables…

Pickled vegetables are a great way to add freshness to your food this fall, especially as we have less ripe summer produce available.

We’ve curated a few dozen of our favorite recipes to garnish with pickles here:

FOOD TRENDS 🚀

Chantilly cake

Why is this everywhere now?

From weddings to birthday parties, the berry chantilly cake popularized by Whole Foods is ubiquitous. The cake is a go-to among shoppers providing dessert for a potluck, picnic, or first date.

On paper, the cake appears run-of-the-mill: vanilla sponge layers separated by whipped icing and fresh berries. So why is it so popular?

1) The surprisingly sophisticated flavor

• Store-bought cakes have earned a reputation for being overly sweet, tacky, and loaded with artificial ingredients. The chantilly cake gained popularity for unexpectedly tasting great.

• The frosting tastes like fresh dairy and its sweetness is balanced by the fresh acidity of the real berries. This also makes it a safe-bet crowd pleaser.

2) Social media & visual appeal

• Over the past year or two, the cake quickly gained popularity on TikTok and blogs, spawning hundreds of dupe recipes.

• The cake is simple enough to replicate at home, but elegant enough to bring to formal functions, like weddings or showers.

3) Whole Foods distribution & sizing options

• The upscale grocery chain responded quickly to the internet fame, making the cake available in locations around the country.

• The cake is available in different sizes, but most crucially — in single servings. Customers can buy just a slice and scratch the chantilly itch at any time, without having to buy a full cake or wait for the next group event.

Note: Chantilly cream (a French term) is traditionally just lightly whipped cream sweetened with sugar and vanilla. Whole Foods seems to use the term more for its marketing ring than for the recipe: the frosting is supposedly made with mascarpone and cream cheese.

READER Q&A 🧠

Cooking for a crowd

Answer: For the most part, you can just multiply recipe ingredient quantities. What might change, however, is the cooking time, method, and equipment used. In general, larger quantities of food are going to take longer to bake in the oven or cook through in a pan.

Don’t rely on the recipe time suggestions and instead use your senses to determine when something is done.

• For example, a single serving of meat or vegetables might crisp up and brown nicely in a pan, but crowding that same pan with larger quantities can overwhelm the heat source and cause everything to just steam together instead.

• For this reason, try searing ingredients in batches (which can often end up going faster than heating one large batch through), or using a large sheet pan in the oven or broiler.

If you’re hosting — consider preparing all or most component parts of a recipe ahead of time. When your guests arrive, heat the elements through and assemble them into a freshly finished dish.

Have a culinary question? Reply to send it in for a chance to be featured and get your question answered.

READER PHOTO SUBMISSIONS 📸

Want to be featured with fame and credit on Cook Well? Navigate to a recipe and submit a photo using the linked photography guide.

Don’t have a professional camera? No sweat:

• All you need is a phone and a white background, and the guide will walk you through the rest of the process.

If we update your photo on the website, we’ll also give you a shoutout here in the newsletter!

EXTRA HELPINGS 🍽️

A read: Icelands underground bread

In a minute or less: Make your own tortillas

What we’re watching: Best of Mise en Place

Food science: Hottest Peppers from 11 Countries

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