I ran into a number of people when I was working near Foggy Bottom whom I’d only ever seen on TV. It struck me how often they seemed smaller and more frail in person.
(Carl Rowan frequently walked by my office window, apparently talking to himself - this was before cell phones were common. I had done enough writing myself to realize that he wasn’t nuts, he was working out the language he was using in a coming article, book, or interview.)
English cucumbers and red onions make a pretty pickle jar.....made in an instant.
My favorite web site.....mrsbutterworths.com.....has a pickle recipe you can eat-right-away.
Takes 15 minutes to make; ready to go in eight hours, refrigerates up to 5 days.
Serve on sandwiches or grilled hamburgers. Add to chopped salads.
INSTANT SWEET PICKLES
Ingredients ◦⅔ cups white-wine vinegar or apple-cider vinegar ◦⅓ cup sugar ◦⅛ teaspoon Kosher salt ◦2 cups thinly sliced English cucumber, or any small, slender cucumber ◦1½ cups thinly sliced onions ◦2 tablespoons torn dill sprigs ◦1 teaspoon whole peppercorns ◦3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
METHOD mix vinegar, sugar, and salt, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Set aside. In a nonreactive bowl, combine cucumbers,onions, dill, and peppercorns. Add evo. Stir well. Pour over vegetables and toss to combine.
FINAL Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 8 hours before serving. Store pickles, refrigerated, for up to 5 days.
Did you ever eat at John Mandis’ restaurant? That was another less formal and low key restaurant and watering hole not far from Capitol Hill and a gathering place for pols and media. They had a ships bell that was rung when there was a House or Senate quorum call. Drivers and aides would collect the heavy drinkers to vote.
Mostly seafood, offering diners choice of live lobsters. Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was served up a giant lobster well over 10 lbs during his visit. They had a wonderful she-crab bisque.
My high school bud was a bartender there so I stopped by often after work. Watched how lobbyists liquored up our representatives. Actually had a brief chat with Art Buchwald at one of the bars while he was waiting for a table. A Special Forces major gave me a capsule lesson on Malthus. An impromptu reunion dinner of ten classmates revealed that only two of us worked in the private sector, the other eight worked for various government agencies. But that's Washington DC for you.