Saturday, July 27, 2013

Dill Pickles and Pickled Beets

Dear Jess,

I had an amazing time at the market this morning! I picked up some pickling cucumbers, and some different coloured beets. I decided it's time to start my winter pantry. It is almost 3:00 in the afternoon, and I now have 9 large jars of pickles, and 4 medium jars of pickled beets! I'm off to a great start!

Dill Pickles
adapted from www.epicurious.com 
(I tripled this recipe)

8-10 small pickling cucumbers (about 3 pounds)
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups water
3 tbsp kosher salt
8 heads fresh dill
8 cloves of garlic
peppercorns 

Wash and trim your cucumbers.

Heat jars. (I either take them fresh out of the dishwasher, or heat them for 10 minutes in a 200 Degrees oven)

Combine vinegar, water, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

Remove jars from heat. Place 1 head fresh dill and 1 clove garlic into each jar; pack in cucumbers (if they're large, quarter them lengthways.) Add 1 more head of fresh dill and 1 more clove of garlic and a few peppercorns. Pour boiling vinegar mixture over cucumbers to within 1/2 inch of rim. Process for 10-15 minutes in boiling bath.

Tip: Garlic may turn blue or green in the jar. Nothing to be alarmed about. It is only the effect of the acid on the natural pigments in the garlic.



Pickled Beets
from Mustards, Pickles and Chutneys by Margaret O'Sullivan, Page 36

6 beets
1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar
3 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3-4 heads fresh dill (or 3-4 tsp dill seeds)

Cook the beets, with some stalk intact, for 15-20 minutes or until they are tender. Dreain, setting aside 1 1/2 cups of the cooking liquid. When the beets are cool, cut off the stalks and bottoms, then peel. Slice, then pack into warm dry jars.

Bring the vinegar and reserved cooking liquid to a boil, add the mustard, salt and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the dill to the jars with the beets, then cover completely with the hot vinegar mixture. Seal in a boiling bath for 10 minutes. Leave for a few days before using.



Next will be peach preserves I think! Hope your summer is going well!

Love,




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