Dill Pickle Chunks with Garlic

Dill Chunks with garlic cloves a great way to use leftover pickling cucumbers. I use a jar of these at parties. Sometimes people do not want a whole pickle so this is the greatest way for them to taste you creation

It has been such a great idea. I noticed that many people who thought they did not want a whole pickle (Could not quite understand) grab a toothpick an try them. Also it is so nice to have a small bowl of these pickle chunks to go with just a bite of cheese.

This combo goes well with crackers and cheese. One of our BBQ's I chopped up a jar of them and everyone used it on their hamburger and hot dog's.

Ingredients

8 pounds of pickling cucumbers
48 garlic cloves 5 to 6 per jar
1/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of canning salt or Kosher Salt
1-2 quarts of vinegar
1 quart of water
1 tablespoon of mustard seed
3 tablespoons of pickling spices
Fresh green or dry dill (1 sprig per jar)


Combine your sugar, salt, vinegar and water in a large stainless steel pot.  Add your pickling spices to your brine in the pot and simmer for 15 minutes. I just realized with all the pictures I take and I take a lot. I have none of brine, huh what a funny thing!

While your brine is simmering chop your cucumbers into bite size pieces.

Pack your cucumber's chunks, garlic cloves and dill into the sterilizer jars, leaving a 1/4 inch of headspace.



Ladle hot liquid into jars and again leaving the 1/4 inch head space. 

Some jar's get hot pepper's !

Remove air bubble. Wipe the rim's of all your jar's. 

Adjust two piece caps.

Process for 15 minutes in a hot water bath. Carefully remove the jars from the water-bath. Let your jar's cool completely then remove the twist part of the cap. Clean you jar's and store in a cool dark place. Do not store your jar's with the twist part of the cap on and make sure you store "Clean" jars.

The longer they sit the richer the taste of the garlic. Let them sit for at least 2 week.

Disclaimer: This is not an all inclusive recipe for making jam. You should have a basic knowledge and understanding of the canning process before proceeding. Please consult your local Center for Home Preservation for additional information and available classes.    

Why do you cover your pickles with ice

Covering the pickles prior to preserving with ice?
Why you ask so many times. Many canners do this or will soak them in ice water for up to 5 hours.I just want to get the moisture back that is lost in the picking and getting to the Store or Farmers Market.
I never know how long a pickle has sat. It can be fresh picked at the Framer's Market but fresh yesterday or this morning. Regardless I do not know unless I have picked it myself which is not always going to happen.



I cover my pickles with Kosher salt and ice cubes for 1 hour prior to the chop and stuffing in the jars. I do this right before I start to get everything ready. Make sure you scrub your cucumbers and take off the bloom.

By the time I am done getting things ready the cucumbers are rinsed and ready to get chopped and packed. 


I do this because by the time I get them home they have lost a great deal of moisture and the ice water perks them back up.  

Be sure prior to soaking or once they have been rinsed to cut off the ends of the cucumber.

Pickled Cauliflower

Pickling anything is a fun sport when you pickle you can add your own twist.

I love cauliflower it is so delicious. I eat it so many different way's. This pickled cauliflower is so yummy I love pickles so to add some garlic and dill to these little flowers is a treat to open during the winter.





It really is the same liquid you use for the garden mix. When you pickle anything it becomes more personal with time.

Fresh Dill from the  garden

Nice clean garlic cloves

I pack my jars right from the bowls. I add a garlic clove, dill and cauliflower in layers into each jar. Stop when you get about a half inch from the top of the jar. You can add more after you have added the pickling solution.






Alright once your jars are packed add the liquid to each jar taking care to leave that half inch from the top. Take a chopstick or a knife and use this to get any bubbles out of the jars. Just gently swirl it around the rim of each jar. Now pack any additional vegetable you can . I pack tight at this point you want to leave a 1/4 inch head space. Wipe your jars around the top and place your lids and bands. Tighten them and give them a water bath for 15 minutes at a rapid boil. 

Make sure they are not touching they need their space. Once the time is up wait for about 5 minutes and carefully remove your jars and set them on a towel to cool. Let them cool overnight or all day. When you go to store them take off the band and wipe them clean. You never want to store you canned goods with the band it could have some particles on it and it will go bad on and around your jar. Euu

Pickled Cauliflower is really just cauliflower as a pickle the ingredients are easy and the vegetable is so ready and available.

Liquid

4 cups distilled white vinegar
1 cup apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup of white sugar
3 teaspoon mustard seed
3 tsp celery seed
2 tsp turmeric

In a large pot bring this solution to a near boil then down to a simmer.

Sweet Zucchini Relish

This sweet Zucchini Relish is just one more of our Peoples Preserves. It comes from Judy at Prim2Pink  she has a nice blog with good information on all things crafty.
So here is her recipe...

Ingredients

10 cups zucchini, ground
4 cups onion, ground
2 large green peppers , ground
5 tbs salt
(Let stand overnight in the refrigerator)

Add:
1 tb mustard seed
1 tb celery seed
1 tb turmeric
1/2 tsp pepper
5 cups of sugar
2 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar

Bring to a boil - 10 minutes
Add ttb cornstarch, dissolved
Boil 4-5 additional minutes, stirring regularly (If you use a white spoon it will stain it permanently)
Put in jars, Hot water bath for 10 minutes
Makes 7 pints.

Thank you Judy

Bread and Butter Pickles

Look at these little darling's Persian cucumbers. I have passed these little ones many a time at the farmer's market. i was never really sure if they could stand up to pickling. So small and so un-cuck-ish looking. Ah my courage took over and I decided to experiment with them for some bread and butter pickles. 

The first few things always to do is snip off the little stem and wash them . Once washed they go on to a bed of ice sprinkled with a little Kosher salt.

I cover them with ice for about an hour or so.  Once this is done I take them and cut just the end off. I really never know unless I am fermenting then it becomes a whole different process. But when I pickle I will slice just the end's off.

Many cook's put the onions and cuck's slices on ice then salt. I do not put the onions on the ice, the reason is I am not hugh on using a lot of salt. I do not care how much you rinse them so I just use the littlest bit.. I want my pickles to have the taste of the spices and liquid. Personal preference.

While the cuck's are napping it is time to prep all the other ingredients. I like my ingredients measured out and waiting. I slice my onion's thin with the mandolin.Then set them aside.

Now our cuck's are cold rinse them off with cold water and start to slice. Use your kitchen knife or a mandolin. I use the mandolin for Bread and Butter all my other pickles I rough chop. 

I layer the ingredients into the jars get the liquid in the jars and water bath wa la done. Yum ... Most of my pickles I let sit for at least three weeks. These get a lot of flavor in a little time but do give them at least a week to mingle.

When I started to make Bread and Butter pickles I had tasted some back East that were out of this world good. I searched and searched for there secret ingredient. Well it is no longer a secret. It is called Mahleb. The Spice House no longer sells it so I am on a hunt for a reliable source. The spice is the pit of sour cherries. It is used in Middle East and Mediterranean cooking.


Well good luck and always enjoy the process. Oh this makes about 6 pints give or take

Bread and Butter Pickles

• 4 pounds Persian cucumbers (I used Persian you do not have to)
• 2 large onion, quartered, sliced about 1/4-inch thickness
• 1/3 cup kosher salt
• 3 cups cider vinegar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp celery seeds
• 1 tbs whole Mahleb seeds (Optional)
• 2 tsp yellow mustard seeds
• or use 1/4 to a 1/2  cup  pickling spices   

Wash cucumbers lightly salt and cover with ice for app. 2 hours

Slice onion into thin slices set aside

Have your spices measured and ready in to add to liquid ingredients

In a large pot over medium heat, combine the dry and wet ingredients and bring to a boil.

Firmly in a gentle way pack the vegetables in prepared jars.  

If it is too loose they will rise and you will have about an inch of liquid space. See the picture of my jar's they look packed but once I put the liquid in and get rid of the air bubbles they go down

Pour the liquid into jars, dividing evenly among the jars - leave a 1/4 inch head space
Remove any air bubbles from each jar and wipe the rim of the jar.


If you do not have the tool to remove the bubbles take a chop stick and run it around the inside of the jar you will see bubbles come up

Ok now cover them with the lid and the twist the top firmly.

Place jar's in your boiling water bath, adding more hot water if you need to to keep the level above the jars. Cover and boil for 15 minutes

Lift the jars out of the water and place on a counter to cool. I put a large towel down for them and space them so they have room do not let them touch each other. 

Remember to remove the screw band when storing them. Wipe the jars off once they have cooled. Always label with the date and contents.

Fermenting the cucumber's Week 3

 Looking good. Scrape the scum...Sounds like a reality show

 A little floater wanted me to cut it and taste.
Glad I did they should be called salty cucks, Phew I think I just gained 10 pounds water retention. There is a fix for that but I will go over that in my next post on this subject.

But it was crunchy and crisp .
Yeah! The salty I am going to go search about.

Ok I'm on

I have to say last night I could taste a pickle but alas none in my pantry . They have all been eaten. my mouth was watering.  I love pickles and I lover preserving them. Now my little experiment with the fermented ones. Not so much. I have to admit when I am wrong. I was a little to excited to make them and used hot warm salted water on the fresh pickles. This is a no no no after all they sat on ice cubes to get crisp. Look I'm no Canneroligist I just am like everyone else trying to get a little knowledge. I do get a few laughs on the way!

So back to pickles today I am going on a cucumber hunt. All my plants seem to be getting eaten by the mystery bug in my garden. But I will figure that out to.

That is a nice cucumber is it not if I do say so myself.  Yes one that is all I have talk about small batch.....lol


So here is the list of this weeks pickling extravaganza.
Spicy Garden mix this will have what ever we buy today that will taste yummy together which is all of it. Also Bread and Butter pickles my sister Casey made the best. And some Kosher dills. I will attempt this week to do the fermenting again...lol....love learning