9 Day Pickles

These are one of my favorite pickles. They remind me of pickles my uncle Roland made me when I was a kid. They are quite similar to the Lime Pickles in flavor but the technique is very different.

Ingredients:

1 gallon young cucumbers
1 cup salt
2 cups vinegar
1/2 teaspoon powdered alum
4 lbs white sugar
6 cups cider vinegar
1 stick cinnamon
1 tablespoon allspice
1 tablespoon whole cloves

Directions:
Day 1: Mix 1 gallon water with 1 cup of salt in a stone crock. Add whole cucumbers to saltwater. Weigh down by covering with a small plate. Cover.

 

Day 2: Let stand
Day 3: Let stand
Day 4: Drain and cover with fresh water
Day 5: Drain and cover with fresh water
Day 6: Drain and cover with fresh water
Day 7: Drain, cut cucumbers into 1/2 inch chunks (or slices or spears). In a large pot, bring pickles, 1 gallon of water, 2 cups vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon alum to a boil. Let stand for 1 hour. Drain. Boil 1 gallon of water and pour over pickles. Transfer to crock, weigh down, cover and let stand.

 

Day 8: Drain pickles. Tie cinnamon, cloves, and allspice in cheesecloth. Boil spices with 6 cups cider vinegar and 4 lbs white sugar for 3 minutes. Pour spiced mixture over pickles. Weigh down, cover and let stand.

 

Day 9: Pour off syrup into large pot. Bring to boil. Pack pickles into sterilized jars. Pour syrup over pickles. Seal jars (Boil for 11 minutes).

 

These are good to eat right away. Give 3 weeks to fully develop flavor.

Lime Pickles

 

Here is my first attempt at Mama Dessie’s lime pickles (see recent post). Everyone remembers these, but I had a hard time finding the recipe. Mom finally found it in an old recipe book and sent it to me (thanks Mom). Of course I didn’t want to do 7 pounds to start with, actually I couldn’t find 7 pounds, I could only find 2. Conversions galore.

This is the first time I’ve used lime. Weird stuff, makes the cucumbers VERY crisp. 

Ingredients:
2 lbs cucumbers
12 cups water
2 cups slated lime (hydrated)
3.5 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp (scant) pickling spice
1/2 tsp (scant) celery seed
1/2 tsp (scant) whole cloves
3 cups cider vinegar

Yields approximately 3 pints

Directions:
1. Slice cucumbers and place in enamel crock or plastic tub.
 

2. Add lime and cover with water. Stir to mix.
  

3. Cover with a plate to weigh down. Cover crock.
 

4. Rinse thoroughly in several changes of water. Cover in water and let stand for 3 hours.

5. Combine sugar, vinegar, and spices. Pour over cucumbers. Let stand over night.
 

6.  Pour everything into a large pot and bring to a boil. Simmer for 40 minutes.
 

7. Pack into sterilized jars and process for 11 minutes.

Hot Bread and Butter Pickles

Lots of canning going on right now. We’re trying to use up all of the veggies before the season is over. I’ve tried a few recipes so far for various pickles, but so far these are my favorite bread and butter pickles. Not bad for a total experiment (trying to use up some cayennes).

If you don’t can, start. You’ll never go back to store bought pickles and veggies again.

Ingredients

1/2 lb of assorted hot peppers (7 oz. Hungarian wax and 2 oz. cayenne)
1/2 lb of carrots cut into 1/4 inch strips
1 medium onion thinky sliced
2 lb cucumbers cut into wedges
3 tbsp salt
7 cups sugar
7 cups vinegar
1 tsp celery seed
1 tbsp pickling spice
1 1/2 tsp turmeric

Yields 3 pints 

Directions
1. Combine vegetables in a bowl and mix with salt.
 

2. Let stand for at least 2 hours. Rinse and drain thoroughly.
 

3. Heat up sugar, vinegar, celery seed, pickling spice and turmeric in a large pot over medium heat.

4. Add vegetables and cook for 10 minutes.

5. Remove from heat, cool for 15 minutes. Spoon into sterilized jars.

6. Process for 11 minutes. Let stand for 2 weeks or more to allow flavors to blend.
 

Notes:
The cucumbers came out a little limp, I should have cut them into slices. Also we came up short of 3 pints. Next time we’ll add a little more veggies.

Hot Dill Pickles

 

Well, I had some time today to try out Mama’s dill pickle recipe (see earlier post today). My wife’s been craving dill pickles lately, now that she’s expecting. We’ll have to wait a couple of weeks for the flavors to develop with these to see if they are what she was looking for.

Update: WAY TOO SALTY. Next time I will try 1 teaspoon. I think there was a typo in the full recipe that I reduced.

Ingredients
4 medium cucumbers (cut into spears)
2 Hungarian wax peppers (pierced)
1 cayenne pepper (pierced)
2 pearl onions
2 heads of dill
1 cup vinegar
2 cups water
1/4 cup salt

Yields 1 quart

Directions
1. Bring vinegar, water and salt to a boil

2. Stuff sterilized quart jar with vegetables and dill

3. Pour liquid over vegetables

4. Process in a hot water bath for 11 minutes.

  

Old recipes found

It seems everyone has forgotten how to pickle and can things. Our generation is missing out on outstanding food.

I’ve been trying to find recipes that I loved as a kid. Here are two my Mom sent me that are from my Dad’s mother Dessie Johnson.

Today’s project is going to be making these recipes to see if I can make them taste like I remember.

I think the salt should be a tablespoon or even a teaspoon but NOT a cup

Hot Dill Pickles                     Dessie Johnson

Pinky size cucumbers (a lot)

1 quart vinegar

2 quarts water

1 cup coarse salt

Bring to a boil.

Pack tightly in jars:

cucumbers

1 whole banana

1 small (Pearl) onion

1 head fresh dill (or 1 teaspoon dried)

Pour biling mixture in packed jars to fill, seal jars.

Boil sealed jars 5 minutes

Lime Pickles                         Dessie Johnson

Prepare in crock, enamel or plastic Only.

7 pounds medium size cucumbers

2 cups slated lime (hydrated)

2 gallons water.

Pour salted water over cucumbers and let set 24 hours.

Rinse thouroughly in several changes of water.Let set in water 3 hours.

Drain.

Mix together;

1 Tablespoon coarse salt

1 teaspoon mixed pickling spices

1 teaspoon celery salt

1 teaspoon whole cloves

2 quarts + 1 cup vinegar

5 pounds sugar

Pour over pickles and let stand over night.

Next day bring entire mixture to a boil

Simmer 40 minutes

Pack in hot jar and seal.

You need them set at least a week