Monday, April 29, 2013

Pickles


I woke up in the middle of the night very thirsty. I stumbled out of bed and made my way to the refrigerator. I grabbed a jar, unscrewed the lid and took a gigantic chug-a-lug of… PICKLE JUICE!

Pickle Juice is one of my favorite drinks. Yes, I consider it an official beverage.

I went back to bed and had a dream about PICKLES! A very tall man, who was dressed in a PICKLE costume, chased me down the street. On second thought, maybe it was a pickle nightmare. Luckily, the alarm woke me before I found out!

Now that I have revealed how odd I really am, guess what our MUSE is this week…

PICKLES!
Cucumber

While many foods can be pickled, a true “pickle” is a pickled cucumber. People have been pickling cucumbers for nearly 4,000 years.

It all started when people from Northern India took some cucumber seeds to the Tigris River Valley in present day Turkey, Iraq, and Syria. Soon, people learned how to preserve these vegetables by packing them in a salty brine. Eventually this technique would spread into Europe.

During early sea exploration, explorers (and pirates) learned that eating pickles helped prevent scurvy. Scurvy is a NASTY disease that happens when your body lacks Vitamin C. To prevent scurvy, all you have to do is eat fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, fresh fruits and vegetables would not last an entire sea voyage, but PICKLES would!!!

Next time you look at some illustrations of old pirates, check and see how many teeth they have. One symptom of scurvy is spongy gums and the loss of teeth. GROSS!

Some believe that if it were not for the PICKLE, Christopher Columbus and his crew would have died of scurvy before making it to America.

Also, the man that America is named after (Amerigo Verpucci) was not only an explorer but a pickle merchant.

The pickle became very popular with kings and queens throughout the world. Cleopatra , the Queen of Egypt, claimed that pickles were good for health and beauty. The first Queen Elizabeth LOVED pickles and so did George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and uh, The King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley (wink).

So, how is a pickle made?

While there are many different varieties of pickles, ranging from sweet to VERY sour, the dill pickle is the most popular. Take a look at this video and see how dill pickles are made at home.


Pickles are YUMMY by themselves, but you will find many recipes that call for these scrumptious delights, too. One of my favorite recipes that REQUIRES pickles is potato salad. I like both sweet and dill pickles in my potato salad.

Another fantastic way to eat a pickle is to fry them. I LOVE FRIED PICKLES! Take a look at this video and see how it is done. WARNING: If you want to make pickles or fry pickles, make sure to ask an adult for help (smile).


Here is another FUN pickle fact: The average American eats 9 pounds of pickles a year, but Professor Watermelon eats at least double that amount!

Before we start writing, I must show you a book written by one of my favorite friends, Kim Baker!


I wonder what her MUSE was??? Take a look a look at the book trailer below.



With this new knowledge, what kind of story could you write? Maybe these WHAT IF questions will help you get started.

WHAT IF your main character ate only pickles?

WHAT IF your main character dug up an ancient pickle in his/her backyard?

WHAT IF there was a mad scientist trying to pickle the planet?

The possibilities are endless, and please leave your own what if questions in the comment section below. I’d love to see what you come up with.

So, grab a cup of hot cocoa, a pencil and a piece of paper, and let’s begin. With your imagination, we can go anywhere. I look forward to seeing where you take us.

With Imagination,

Professor Watermelon

The word of the day is “brine”. Here is the definition: a salt and water solution for pickling.

5 comments:

  1. Love these pickle facts! I didn't know this stuff, and I've researched pickles! And thanks for the book link! xo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are very welcome! Thank YOU for inspiring US! Much love from Professor Watermelon!

      Delete
  2. what if pickles could grow on trees?
    what if pickles made watermelons grow?
    what if pickles were red?
    what if pickles could talk?
    what if pickles were blended into smoothies?
    what if pickles was a name of a universe?
    what if pickles had purple spots?
    what if pickles were frogs?
    what if pickles was a color?
    what if pickles is the only nonliving thing on earth?
    what if pickles landed on mars?
    what if pickles could touch the sun and not die?
    what if pickles were stars?
    what if pickles was a national tree?
    what if pickles could jump?
    what if pickles could fly?
    what if pickles were yellow
    what if pickles could never rot
    what if pickles were never green?
    what if pickles could change colors?

    ~achir

    ReplyDelete
  3. What if pickles were really money?
    What if pickles were wrestlers?
    What if pickles were the warriors ?
    What if pickles were poisinouse?
    What if pickles were 2,000,000 pounds?
    What if pickles were nerds?
    What if pickles could turn into people ?
    What if pickles are credit cards?
    What if pickles were blue?
    What if pickles could turn into a sales poster?

    ReplyDelete
  4. What if pickles are grown on the bottom of the ocean?
    What if pickles are related to hot dogs?
    What if pickles can come in every flavor?
    What if pickles are zombies?
    What if pickles explode when they touch electricity?
    What if pickles change color every few minutes?
    What if pickles came from Jupiter's moon Europa?
    What if pickles are related to lettuce?
    What if pickles are dead bodies of snakes?

    ReplyDelete