Bread 'n' Butter Pickles

Here is the perfect solution to all those cucumbers you have growing on your Tower Garden (or the ones your neighbour keeps giving you!) Here is a recipe for a fermented food that is easy and has a low sugar content. Fermented foods increase the good bacteria in your gut and produce compounds (short chain fatty acids) that help strengthen and rebuild your gut lining. 

Bread 'n' Butter Pickles are the perfect sweet and tangy solution to any meal that needs some punchy improvement. Why the name? Apparently in the Great Depression they were a cheap household staple, so they were eaten in sandwiches of just bread and butter because that's all they could afford.

Ingredients:
600 grams cucumbers
1 large brown onion
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1 tablespoon rice malt syrup
1/4 teaspoon turmeric, ground
1 pinch freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:
1. Thinly slice the cucumbers and onion (on a mandoline is easiest) and place into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle on salt and toss together to coat. Cover and place in the fridge to sit overnight so the salt draws out the water from the cucumbers and softens the veggies. The next day, rinse and drain the cucumbers well. 
2. Heat the apple cider vinegar, mustard seeds, rice malt syrup and turmeric in a saucepan on medium heat. Cook until you reach a simmer and rice malt syrup dissolves. Stir to combine everything. Add in the cucumber and onions and again, bring to a simmer for 30 seconds.
3. Scoop mixture into clean jars. Ensure there is enough brine (liquid) covering the cucumber and onion pickles. Leave on the counter for 1 day, then move to the fridge to store.  

They will keep up to 3 months in the fridge, if left out they may mold.