By Katy G. Wilkens

I love these last few days of summer when the garden is almost, but not quite, out of control. The fig trees are holding out branches laden with fruit, the apples are getting bigger day by day, tomatoes have to be picked for dinner every night. And anything too abundant to eat fresh gets pickled!

Pickling is a great way to save all that wonderful harvest for the dark days of winter. Most people think cucumbers when they think of pickles, but you can pickle almost any vegetable, including onions, cauliflower, green beans and radishes. And most people think pickles have to be heavily salted, but you can make refrigerator pickles (also called fresh pack pickles) with no salt at all.

It’s great that we can enjoy pickles’ sour-sweet crunch without relying on salt, because salt causes blood pressure to rise and is hard on both your heart and kidneys.

I especially like making pickled red onions. They last all winter in my fridge and are a great addition to pulled pork sandwiches, tacos, green salads and both potato and egg salads. Try them stir fried with kale and turmeric for a savory fall side dish.

Purple Onion Pickles
4 red onions (you can use yellow onions too)
3 cups vinegar (cider, rice or champagne vinegar)
¼ cup sugar
1 grape leaf, fresh or from a jar (if available)
¼ cup mustard seed
1 red pepper, sliced thin
1 hot pepper, sliced thin (optional)
4 cloves garlic
4 slices ginger
1 tablespoon black peppercorns (optional)

Use canning jars or other glass containers; metal will react to the vinegar, and plastic will take on the scent of the onions.

Bring vinegar and sugar to a boil. Slice onions into ¼-inch rings. If you have them, put a grape leaf into each jar, which will make the pickles crisper. Add onions, red pepper slices, ginger and garlic to each jar. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of mustard seed on top. Pour vinegar mixture to cover onions. Cover and refrigerate.

You can eat these pickled onions in just 30 minutes, but they taste much better after a week. They will last more than two months in the refrigerator. Instead of onions, substitute cauliflower, carrots, green beans, cucumbers or any other garden produce you would like.

Nutritional Information (serving size: ½ cup):
Calories: 82, Carbohydrates: 14 grams, Protein: 2 grams, Sodium: 4 milligrams

The information in this column is meant for people who want to keep their kidneys healthy and blood pressure down by following a low-sodium diet. In most cases, except for dialysis patients, a diet high in potassium is thought to help lower high blood pressure. These recipes are not intended for people on dialysis without the supervision of a registered dietitian.  

[Katy G. Wilkens is a registered dietitian and department head at Northwest Kidney Centers. A recipient of the Susan Knapp Excellence in Education Award from the National Kidney Foundation Council on Renal Nutrition, she has a Master of Science degree in nutritional sciences from the University of Washington. See more of her recipes at www.nwkidney.org.]