Well, I just brought up another big load of cucumbers to do something with, and that reminded me that I had promised to share a couple of easy pickle recipes; so, here they are;)
Spiced Sweet Freezer or Refrigerator Pickles
Half a day's worth of cucumbers - about 8 cups, thinly sliced with skin removed, or chunked with well-scrubbed skin retained.
Two Tablespoons pickling salt
One and a half cups sugar
One cup white vinegar
Three quarter cup water
One Tablespoon mixed pickling spices
One Tablespoon celery seeds
One teaspoon dry mustard or mustard seeds
Mix cucumbers and pickling salt in a non-reactive container (no metal), cover completely with water and let sit for two hours. I use small plates with bowls partially filled with water on top to submerge all cucumbers. Any that aren't covered can turn into mushy pickles;)
When they're about done soaking, combine remaining ingredients in a medium pan and heat on low, just long enough to dissolve sugar. Cool to room temperature and strain if desired. I leave mine in;)
Rinse cucumbers well (I usually do a triple-rinse), and drain.
For single use freezer pickles -
Fill bag with enough cucumbers for your family's needs. For us - it's about 2 handsful. Swirl a ladle in your cooled pickling mix and scoop out enough to cover your bagged cucumbers. Gather in the sides of the bag to slightly compress the contents and press down gently to remove excess air, then seal your bag. I like the non-ziplock bags for these, it's easier to just twist and knot than to fumble with zips and ties.
Ready for the freezer! Mine are usually a sticky mess, so I set all the little bags in a plastic bowl in the freezer until they're frozen.
Any leftover mix can be used in the same manner for refigerator pickles. They say that they'll usually need up to eight weeks to fully flavor-up, but I eat mine whenever;)
***Extra tips***
Don't skip, or skimp on the soaking part - you'll end up with slimy, mushy pickles.
Special salt used for pickling is a necessity! Believe me, I tried it once with Kosher salt (tee-hee!); what a soft and slimy, rotten waste of time that was!
Make sure if you double or halve the recipe size to keep your vinegar to water ratios very nearly the same; always very important in vinegared food preservation!
You can substitute other vinegars, just be sure that they have a four to six percent acetic acid content. Keep in mind that if you use apple cider vinegar your pickles will be golden-colored, and not as crisp.
This recipe can also be used for freezer sweet pepper, zuccini and carrot sticks, as well as sweet pickled freezer green beans - my young'un's favorite! Just don't use the very middle of the zucchini, if it's a large one. About the same ratio of white to green suits very well;)
Stay tuned for Easy Dills...coming soon!
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