Lisa Messinger's
Cookbooks of the Week

Quick Pickles: Easy Recipes with Big Flavor
by Chris Schlesinger, John Willoughby and Dan George (Chronicle)

If you would rather adorn your hamburger with sichuan-style garden pickles, sweet-hot curried zucchini pickles, or crunchy orange-pickled red onions with chipotles and tequila than a slimy dill spear, you'll be glad that Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby joined forces with Dan George and turned their attention from grilling (they penned the bestseller The Thrill of the Grill) to pickling. Better yet, much of the quick-pickling fare from the minds of this creative trio would be better suited to dressing up your fanciest gourmet dinner party than a casual backyard barbecue. There are stunners like bourbon pickled apricots, citrus-pickled turnip wafers with gin and juniper berries, red wine-pickled beets with fresh horseradish and warm spices, and balsamic-pickled grapefruit with shaved fennel. And, believe it or not, as the authors promise, most recipes are a breeze. They adroitly describe the difference between fresh, fermented, and oil-preserved pickles and how most of their gems are fresh since they are the quickest and easiest. There are reasons these recipes are so well written and expertly crafted: George is a caterer and pickle expert, Willoughby is the senior editor of the acclaimed Cooks Illustrated magazine and writes regularly with Schlesinger for The New York Times, and restaurateur Schlesinger is a James Beard award winner for Best Chef in New England.

RECIPE: SWEET-HOT CURRIED ZUCCHINI PICKLES