General Grant's "Breakfast"

amweiner

2nd Lieutenant
Joined
Feb 8, 2017
Location
Monterey, CA
Happy Birthday to U.S. Grant!

In honor of the general and former President, I had a go at recreating his purported favorite breakfast of cucumbers soaked or dipped in vinegar. Feeling we could do a bit better, I put a few twists on this recipe that might take it out of the breakfast realm, but could still be a nice treat with the warmer weather coming.

For whatever reason, I decided to pair the pretty plain taste of cucumbers with the zip of fresh radishes. The color contrasts are appealing, and not sure what Sam Grant might have liked (and because I'm a complete dweeb where food is concerned), I tried several variations:
  • pickling both cucumbers and radishes
  • pickled cucumbers and raw radishes
  • raw cucumbers and pickled radishes
  • both vegetables raw
The pickled veggies were okay. I kept to a simple brine of white vinegar, sugar, salt, and black peppercorns. The texture wasn't what I was aiming for, and the colors washed out, so I ditched the idea of pickling anything and decided to go for raw sliced veggies. To keep up with Grant's preference, I made a vinaigrette that I drizzled over the vegetables (again, my dweeblike nature revealed by use of the word "drizzle"). This turned out to be a great combination. I put the lightest sprinkling of salt over the radishes and let them sit for about 10-15 minutes before dressing them, but it's good! I hope you'll try this and that U.S. Grant isn't spinning in his grave. Enjoy!

Here's my vinaigrette:
  • 3/4 cup oil (olive gives the richest flavor)
  • 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, either dark or golden works great, depending on preference
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1-2 cloves minced or pressed garlic
  • a few shakes of salt and pepper
  • fresh or dried herbs - use anything that you like. I've made this with rosemary, oregano, thyme, marjoram, and chives, all of them awesome. I go more by look than measure, but would guess this is about 1 teaspoon dried herbs or enough fresh to look right.
Combine all ingredients in a blender or shaker jar and blend well.
 
Adam, you ROCK!! :thumbsup:

The favorite snack of both my late husband and my current ranch foreman is raw cucumbers and onions in vinegar.
Augh! I can't stand it, myself -- not least because the smell permeates the house for hours! -- but I could maybe be tempted to try one of your concoctions. I think raw cucumbers with that wonderful-sounding vinaigrette might make even me a cucumber-lover.

Thanks for sharing your culinary creations. And for honoring Grant's birthday in such a charming (and appetizing) way!
 
Sounds very good to me! I make a very simple cucumber salad using something very similar minus the mustard and garlic and white vinegar with sliced red onions. I slice the cucumbers as well, but the addition of the radishes is a nice touch as I think both flavors will compliment each other well given the sweeter flavor of cucumber and the peppery spice of the radishes. Job well done! :smile:
 
Adam, you ROCK!! :thumbsup:

The favorite snack of both my late husband and my current ranch foreman is raw cucumbers and onions in vinegar.
Augh! I can't stand it, myself -- not least because the smell permeates the house for hours! -- but I could maybe be tempted to try one of your concoctions. I think raw cucumbers with that wonderful-sounding vinaigrette might make even me a cucumber-lover.

Thanks for sharing your culinary creations. And for honoring Grant's birthday in such a charming (and appetizing) way!
Sounds very good to me! I make a very simple cucumber salad using something very similar minus the mustard and garlic and white vinegar with sliced red onions. I slice the cucumbers as well, but the addition of the radishes is a nice touch as I think both flavors will compliment each other well given the sweeter flavor of cucumber and the peppery spice of the radishes. Job well done! :smile:

Thank you so much, @KansasFreestater and @Anna Elizabeth Henry! I really hope you'll enjoy this.

My little boy loves this dressing. I've watched him eat four bowls full of salad with it, and of course, it's fun for little people to help make it.

I agree with both of you on the vinegar - depending on what's used, it can smell either incredibly harsh or wonderful, and I like the golden balsamic a lot for the gentler smell.

Have a great day and happy cooking!
Adam
 
Thank you so much, @KansasFreestater and @Anna Elizabeth Henry! I really hope you'll enjoy this.

My little boy loves this dressing. I've watched him eat four bowls full of salad with it, and of course, it's fun for little people to help make it.

I agree with both of you on the vinegar - depending on what's used, it can smell either incredibly harsh or wonderful, and I like the golden balsamic a lot for the gentler smell.

Have a great day and happy cooking!
Adam
Four bowls of salad! Wow, I know grownups who won't do that, let alone little kids. That's awesome! That young man is going to grow up healthy and strong!
 
During the summer my great grandmother would always keep a bowl of sliced fresh garden cucumbers (we grew all our own vegetables on our little bit of land up that holler in West Virginia) soaking in vinegar on her kitchen table. Cucumbers are always some degrees cooler than the ambient temperature, so we great grandkids would eat those sprinkled with salt to cool off. One of my favorite things EVER. I'm not even going to bring up her fried green tomatoes which she fried in bacon drippings...

Thanks for posting!
 
Happy Birthday to U.S. Grant!

In honor of the general and former President, I had a go at recreating his purported favorite breakfast of cucumbers soaked or dipped in vinegar. Feeling we could do a bit better, I put a few twists on this recipe that might take it out of the breakfast realm, but could still be a nice treat with the warmer weather coming.

For whatever reason, I decided to pair the pretty plain taste of cucumbers with the zip of fresh radishes. The color contrasts are appealing, and not sure what Sam Grant might have liked (and because I'm a complete dweeb where food is concerned), I tried several variations:
  • pickling both cucumbers and radishes
  • pickled cucumbers and raw radishes
  • raw cucumbers and pickled radishes
  • both vegetables raw
The pickled veggies were okay. I kept to a simple brine of white vinegar, sugar, salt, and black peppercorns. The texture wasn't what I was aiming for, and the colors washed out, so I ditched the idea of pickling anything and decided to go for raw sliced veggies. To keep up with Grant's preference, I made a vinaigrette that I drizzled over the vegetables (again, my dweeblike nature revealed by use of the word "drizzle"). This turned out to be a great combination. I put the lightest sprinkling of salt over the radishes and let them sit for about 10-15 minutes before dressing them, but it's good! I hope you'll try this and that U.S. Grant isn't spinning in his grave. Enjoy!

Here's my vinaigrette:
  • 3/4 cup oil (olive gives the richest flavor)
  • 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, either dark or golden works great, depending on preference
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • 1-2 cloves minced or pressed garlic
  • a few shakes of salt and pepper
  • fresh or dried herbs - use anything that you like. I've made this with rosemary, oregano, thyme, marjoram, and chives, all of them awesome. I go more by look than measure, but would guess this is about 1 teaspoon dried herbs or enough fresh to look right.
Combine all ingredients in a blender or shaker jar and blend well.
Sounds great. But where do you put the birthday candles?
 
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