Pickles

 My first attempt at pickles was an epic fail. I used a six-week pickle recipe out of  Trisha Yearwood’s cookbook, and I shoulda known right off the bat it was gonna flunk.  I could not find two of the ingredients – cinnamon  & clove oil.  I tried health food stores, pharmacies even (which is where she says to look for it) … and the pharmacist said.. “I wouldn’t sell it to you for a food product!! You don’t eat it!”… and so I tried the recipe with cinnamon sticks and whole cloves instead.  For whatever reason, they were terrible.  I love Trishas cookbook and use many recipes from it, so I will not lay blame there.

My next attempt was yesterday!  And I think we have a winner. There are plenty of pickling methods, but a fellow blogger, Lisa of Two Bears Farm,  recommend using a packet she found in Walmart in the canning section and loved. So off to Walmart I went, and I did find it.

  What’s kinda humorous is… it says right there on the label that it’s  “Canning made easy”.
Let me tell ya, the easy part is mixing spices together.
The hard part… is all the boiling to sterilize lids and jars,
cleaning and cutting up of 5,273 cucumbers
ok that’s an exageration. but not by much!
and then the stuffing, sealing and boiling of the jars in the canner.
LOOK AT ALL THE POTS & UTENSILS
IT TOOK FOR JUST SIX QUART JARS.
The husband said ..
“Well, this was the sole job of women
back in the day. Preparing food all day!
And seems to me it was pretty relaxing work!”
HA!  
As if someone ELSE were doing the laundry beaten over rocks in the stream,
 tending to the kids, cleaning the homestead and feeding the ranch hands
and farm animals, nursing the sick, darning the clothes,
tending the fires and … and… and….
You know what?  Pickle making was a breeze  🙂

24 thoughts on “Pickles”

  1. They look great Karen. I have just canned my third batch of pickles. Two last summer and one last Friday.(my first this summer) You are absolutely right it is a ton of work, but so delicious. One of my sons friends eats and drinks everything in the jar except the dill. Everyone says they are the best pickles they ever had. I just love that compliment.

  2. Those look beautiful! I have made one batch of bread and butter…yup, it is a LOT of work! My Grandma made it look easy. But after wrestling her onery farm husband and sons and farm hands…it probably was! xo, Cheryl

  3. They look delicious! And isn't it amazing to think that those women did this all the time and did all of those other things to boot?! Sheesh I feel lazy now! 😉

    Enjoy those yummy pickles!

    Kat 🙂

  4. You are one lucky gardner, our cucumbers never made it into pickles. In fact they never hardly made it on the table. They were pitiful! And now dead!

    And on another note, have fun cleaning up that kitchen, if it makes you feel any better mine looks the same this morning after canning tomato juice yesterday!

  5. Clove oil is sold at most drugstores in the toothcare aisle. It is natural remedy for a toothache, and usually comes in a tiny bottle with an applicator. We keep it on on-hand for this purpose.
    It tastes AWFUL! And it will make your tooth numb..for a while!
    Too much info, huh! Ha!!
    Could you not find cinnamon at the grocer?

    Anywho, I digress…
    J has made pickles and yep the clean-up was not worth it!!!!
    Our fave pickles are Tony Packo's Pickles! Some grocery's do sell them. They come from a hungarian resturant in Toledo,Oh., where I am from. YUM!!!!!!!!!!

    Will you make them again?!
    xo, misha

  6. Oh Karen, I am laughing out loud over the women beating the clothes on the rocks to clean them! Guys just don't have a clue! Your pickles look wonderful–I'm going to have to try it! Also, I made those blueberry muffins the other day and they were absolutely amazing–not good for the old diet but amazing!!! Thanks! xo

  9. Hooray! I'm so glad they turned out for you this time – that's exactly the stuff I used 🙂 After reading so many reports of pickle flops, I think I'll just stick with the packet! And yes, canning is long, hot work!

  10. I used to make red sauce and salsa with all the tomatoes I grew. I was always surprised at the few jars that I ended up with after all that chopping, cooking and sterilizing. It wasn't as fun as I thought it would be!

    XO,
    Jane

  11. Oh so much work but you will relish( no pun intended0 them with every bite. I tried an easy recipe the other day but it was too sour using apple cider vinegar. I was told later you need to cut the vinegar with water….oh and use a grape leaf.

    Wasn't the rain glorious?
    x
    Carole

  12. Karen,they look beautiful! You'll really enjoy them too! I did 12 quarts of dill pickles earlier this week. This is the 2nd time I've made them, they are a huge hit!

    It is a lot of work, but I find that everyone is very appreciative! I've given them as gifts and everyone was so thankful, they even returned the jars to make sure I'd refill them for next year! LOL!!!

    Next, balsamic pepper jelly!

  16. Karen, there is no need to sterilize your jars and lids when one has a dishwasher. Fill the jars hot from the dishwasher, then process them in a water bath. You've just cut your mess (and steam) in half.

    I used to can tomatoes, and peaches, and jam. Try making peach raspberry jam … it's the best one I have come up with. My freezer is full of last year's fruit. Maybe I should make jam. 🙂

    A friend of mine makes pickled okra … oh, my, it's good.

  17. I haven't made pickles for awhile, but I use Ball's Blue Book recipe (the olde version) where you soak them in a crock for 2 weeks, then boil and pack. If I use enough vinegar (about a cup to a canner full of liquid,) I don't water bath them. Never had a fail.

    Yours look delicious, Karen. Good job. 🙂

  18. Good job, girl! I'm proud of you. They look wonderful! 🙂

    You know, I've never made pickles, I mean you KNOW I've never made pickles. LOL But, my mom used to make the crispy bread & butter ones; oh so good.

  20. Oh my… that is a lot of work!!! They do look yummy though! My granny always made bread and butter pickles that were to die for! I hope yours turn out well. I swear I read Kosher Dill and my mouth started watering!!!

  21. Back when I was a young momma with a ginormous garden like yours I plunged into canning and even though I would swear like my grandpa while in the throes of it, I loved all the lovely jars of beets, green beans, tomatoes, pickles, zuke jam, and even sauerkraut I would can.

    My favorite part was pulling the jars out of the pressure canner, setting them on the kitchen table, and collapsing onto the couch, but listening for the lids to 'ping' as they sealed. I'd count in my mind until I heard them all. Hopefully all anyway.

    Fun fun fun!

  23. Nice job girl! The hardware store has packets for making pickles from the same Mrs. Wages but they are refrigerator mix and you don't have to "can" them. They stay in your fridge and they are delicious!

Comments are closed.