This one was on the table at a book club potluck last week. Everyone raved and wanted the recipe. I'm going to cross post in new recipes. Zucchini Pickles - Heidi Swanson, 100 Cookbooks There are quite a number of ways to play around with the personality of these pickles. Sometimes I shave the zucchini paper-thin, resulting in a whispy tangle of pickled zucchini and onions. Other times I want my pickles to have a bit more bite, structure, and definition. In those instances, I slice the zucchini thicker, perhaps 1/8-inch, and let them drain as long as possible, sometimes overnight refrigerated. Also worth noting, when I make them for our personal condiment stash, I used a brown natural cane sugar. It gives the pickle liquid a brownish cast that, quite frankly, weirds people out if they don't know what is causing it. So, if I'm making the pickles to bring to a BBQ or something, I'll make them with regular organic cane sugar - one that is lighter in color.
 3 medium zucchini (1 pound / 16 oz / 450 g), thinly sliced
 1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
 3 shallots, thinly sliced 1 1/2 tablespoons fine grain sea salt 
1/4 cup (small handful) fresh dill sprigs 1 small fresh red chile pepper, very thinly sliced 1/2 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds 3/4 cup / 180 ml cider vinegar
 3/4 cup / 180 ml white wine vinegar
 1/3 cup / 1.75 oz / 50g natural cane sugar 
Toss the zucchini, onion, shallots, and salt together in a colander and place over a bowl to catch the liquids. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least a couple hours. Toss once or twice along the way. You're aiming to get as much liquid out of the zucchini as possible.

When you're finished draining the zucchini, shake off any water. At this point you want the zucchini as dry as possible. Place in a 1 liter / 1 quart jar along with the dill, chile pepper, and mustard seeds. Alternately, you can cram them into a 3/4 liter Weck jar like I do, but it's always a bit snug in the jar. Combine the ciders and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring until the sugar dissolves, and continue to boil for a few minutes. Pour the liquid over the zucchini and seal the jar. Let cool, then refrigerate. The pickles are good for a week or so. 

Makes one large jar. Prep time: 120 min - Cook time: 5 min Here is a link that might be useful: Quick pickled zucchini

This is one of my pet peeves. We are interviewing contractors for our kitchen project right now. Some of them look at the plans, listen to what we have to say, and then raise a point or two like, have you thought about x? I am fine with that and happy to have someone point out things based on their experience that I may not have realized. Then there are the contractors that say things like, "Induction? You don't want induction. All the best chefs cook with gas." Grrr. These guys have probably never gotten near a cooktop in their lives other than to install one. That doesn't seem to stop them from giving their very definitive advice. Or the guy who said - "you have to do dark wood floors." Me - I don't want dark wood floors. I love how they look but they show too much dust and I know I won't be able to keep them clean. Him - oh, no, that's silly, you have to do dark wood floors, they will look great in your kitchen. Well, guys with an attitude like that will NEVER get my business. We have spoken to about six contractors, and with each contractor, I raised the issue of make up air requirements. Each and every one of them dismissed me and said something like "I've done lots of kitchens, never installed make up air, and never had a problem. Crack open a window when you use the hood on high." This makes me crazy. I wish at least one of them would listen to what we have to say and respond - well, I haven't done it before but I'll ask my HVAC guy what he thinks.

It's sad to see the result of so much bad workmanship which is out there and how it has undermined consumer confidence. The ability to locate a true professional that you do not need to oversee is a difficult task at best. At the same time please keep an open mind when speaking with or correcting the tradesman. The steel protective plates are most likely pre-drilled and wide enough to cover two studs. They only need to cover the stud itself. The overhang is irrelevant. If a small piece of that plywood was to be screwed to the top of a seat then covered with mortar & cement board then waterproofed it is just fine and it didn't end up at the dump. Some would consider that a good thing. A professional will be happy to address your concerns. Please remember we are dealing with a lot of folks who have watched many DIY shows and consider them real word. Not so much! This is not meant as a criticism just pointing out there may be another point of view.

I've been on both sides of this. I have wondered about packages and have also been put in the uncomfortable position of being a go between about the delivery status. For instance, my mother sends packages to my young adult daughters, who live across the country from me. She updates me daily about the them. I sent it, it's in Nashville, it's in Jacksonville, it's delivered. Did they get it? Did they open it? It's ridiculous. At this point, I send stuff and if I don't hear, I don't get worked up about it. Yes, it's not how I was raised and not how I raised my kids. But, I send things because I enjoy it. Embarrassing the recipient or their relatives by chasing after the package ruins the whole process for me.