Picklepalooza

I made sweet pickles last week, using a generations' old recipe from my mother-in-law.  When I say "Sweet Pickles", it is almost a misrepresentation of the yumminess that I created.  Heinz ain't got nothin' on the homemade pickle!

These just-crunchy-enough pickle coins are sweet and sour, with a bouquet of spices that store bought brands don't offer.  Here's the list of pickling spices:  chilies (actually, these I picked out by hand, per the recipe, otherwise we'd have hot and spicy sweet pickles), coriander, cumin, ginger, black pepper, allspice, cinnamon, bay leaves, brown mustard, yellow mustard, cloves and turmeric.  This delightful concoction is from Morton & Bassett (I bought it at Whole Foods).  I imagine that the results will vary depending upon the brand of pickling spices used.

I'm not the only one who liked them, either.  Rob loves them, and so did "the guys" (any of a number of men who work for our general contractor).  One even suggested that I sell them at the Ballard Market.  :-)

If you want to make your own pickles, it's a cinch!  In fact, if you're interested in making your own canned food (jams, fruits sauces, pickles, etc.) pickles are a great place to begin.  The recipe was simple, and I found a similar one in my Ball Blue Book of Preserving (a wonderful resource for all things canning!).  The recipe I used is old enough that the instructions were, shall we say, intuitive.  So I followed the canning recommendations in my Ball Blue Book when I got to that part of the process.

I used to can a lot, but a couple of summers have gone by without this fun, empowering activity.  There's nothing quite like putting away food for the winter, and knowing that at any time I'll be able to pull out something to share with family and friends that is delightful, delicious, and made with my own hands.  This return to canning has me inspired to take advantage of the season's last fruits.  We loved having fresh-tasting canned peaches in February, and nothing compares to homemade plum jam!  I'd better go rustle up my jars and lids....

Comments

[Katie]

sounds fun and delicious!