Pickles!!!

Okay, unbelievably this week I made pickles. My dill isn't even ripe yet, but J brought in a basket of cuke's that needed to be dealt with.


So I washed and sorted and got my act together to make Pickles. We are both huge pickle fans. Every year we make a lot of pickles, and while we may not make it through all of them, we do make it through way too many jars of pickles. Plus, I might add, my pickles are fantastic.



We didn't quite have enough dill yet, like I said, it isn't ripe yet, and due to time constraints, I decided to make Dill, and sliced Dill pickles. The recipe is the same for both, I just like to slice my larger cuke's up so they are ready to go from the jar to a burger or sandwich right away!



I am going to skip through the whole sterilization process of the jars etc for the purpose of this post. Maybe that will be it's own post some day.
So I get my jars out and ready. I cut up the cuke's as desired, or stuff them into the jar's whole. This part is fun but frustrating. You want as little space as you can in the jar's or else you are going to require a lot of juice to fill it up. You don't really want to squash your cuke's either.
Than you get 2 quarts water and 1 quart vinegar and bring it to boil. You can add a pea sized amount of Alum and Cream of Tartar, and 1/2 cup of Coarse salt at this time as well to the water mixture. You also want at least one Garlic bud per jar you plan to make and the dill. I generally add a lot of dill and don't really go by a measurement per se. Once it is almost at a boil get your funnel and spoon ready.
**Just prior to this point, you will want to have some boiling water ready to prep your lids. I always forget to do this, and end up keeping my pickling juice on the stove for longer than necessary.**
I always place my jars on a cookie tray (with sides on it), so that I can catch any spills, or should a bottle break (which has happened to me), you won't have a disaster on your hands. Carefully ladle out your juice into your jars of pickles. Make sure you add the garlic buds in each jar, and if desired, add more to each jar. Also make sure you are getting lots of dill into the jars. Sometimes, when Dill is plentiful, I will add some none boiled dill to the bottoms of every jar, just so they are extra dilly.


Give the top's of your jars a good wipe and place a lid from the boiling water onto the top of each jar.



Hand tighten with the ring and set aside. Once they start to cool off, you can wipe down the whole jar, but remember, they will be hot with the pickle juice in them. If done correctly you should hear the lids pop over the next while to few hours!!! I usually wait a couple of week's before consuming for optimal taste. They should be stored in a cool dry place, a cellar if you have one is best.