I'd never really thought of trying to pickle grapes before. The flavours used sounded really interested. And I had a bunch of nice locally grown grapes that the Kidlet decided she didn't like, so this seemed like a good use for them.

Pickled Grapes

From Baking Sense

Ingredients

• 1/2 (3") cinnamon stick
• 1" piece of vanilla bean¹
• 5 white or green cardamom pods, lightly bruised or cracked
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns
• scant 1/8 tsp. red chile flakes
• 227g seedless grapes
• 1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 1/2 c. (vanilla) sugar
• scant 1/8 tsp. salt

Directions

1. Place cinnamon, vanilla bean, cardamom, peppercorns, and chile flakes in the bottom of a 500mL canning jar.
2. Add the grapes into the jar on top of the spices.
3. Combine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a small pot and bring to a boil.
4. Cook until sugar is fully dissolved.
5. Pour the hot brine over the grapes and seal the jar.
6. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.
7. Once cooled, place in the fridge. Allow to sit for 1-2 days before using.

---

¹ Rather than using one small piece of a fresh vanilla bean, I decided to try using a few large pieces of spent/empty pods. I also used vanilla sugar rather than plain granulated sugar to add some extra vanilla flavour to the mixture. I think this worked quite well and it made for a great way to get a second use out of spent vanilla pods! ^Back