Purple Pickles!!!

Attention: The purple pickles have returned.

I repeat: The purple pickles have returned.

And it's about damned time.

I finally got my hands on some non-imaginary red pearl onions and have once again transformed them into the best thing ever. Because not only are they pickled nibbules of yumminess, they are also, as I think I've mentioned, PURPLE.

... really purple.

While I concede that there might be some creative labeling here (I would call these closer to the size of small elephants than the size of pearls), they are still deliciously gorgeous, so I'll allow it.

It's like eating amethysts.

The onions are blanched for three minutes, then shocked and peeled. The pickling recipe is the same one I use for pickled carrots, but without the garlic, and replacing the dill seed with 2 tablespoons of pickling spice. The purple color comes from the reaction of the vinegar with the pigment in the onions.

Result: Slightly soft, slightly crunchy, slightly sweet, slightly spicy. Plays well with others. A+

(BTW - I'd like to point out that I made everything on that plate up there, and you can, too.)