Pickles!

I haven’t canned anything since Christian was about a year old.  And that was apricot jam that we have used up LONG ago.  I have never canned anything beyond jams but when I saw that Bountiful Baskets was offering 36 lbs of pickling cucumbers for $17, I couldn’t resist trying to pickle.  It was so much fun and I’ve learned a LOT about pickling this last week.

First off, 36 lbs will make four DOZEN quarts of pickles!  I did not make that many but after two dozen quarts I offered the pickles to someone else.

I was really nervous about the process as different recipes I read had either very complicated ingredients and/or complicated instructions.  So I found the least complicated instructions and made those.

Here are my recipes.  One is for Dills and one is for my own bread and butter pickles that I created the recipe myself and honestly, I’m addicted and I’ve forbidden my husband to eat more than his share. ;)

DILL PICKLES

MAKES 6 ONE-Quart JARs

Place in Stockpot:

3 qt. Water

1 qt. Vinegar (5% acidity)

1 cup pickling salt (non-iodized)

Place in each Jar:

one stalk or one teaspoon dill weed

dash or one clove garlic

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

METHOD:  Wash bottling jars, lids and rings. (I put mine in the dishwasher on sanitize and that kept them warm so they wouldn’t break when the hot liquid was poured into them).   Place lids in a small saucepan of water and bring to boil.

Boil water, vinegar and salt.  Scrub cucumbers and if desired cut them in desired manner (I prefer spears because more fit in a bottle that way but I also used my mandolin to crinkle-cut some which was fun).  Pull out warm jars and fill with dill, garlic and mustard.  Fill jars with cucumbers.  Pour boiling mixture in jars with a 1/2 “ of head space (to the middle ring on the bottle). Wipe mouth of jar, put on lid and twist on ring finger-tip tight.  Do not tighten more for 12 hours.  Steam bath is optional.

HEATHER’S EASY BREAD AND BUTTER PICKLES

MAKES 6 ONE-Quart JARs

Place in Stockpot:

3 qt. water

1 qt. apple cider vinegar (5% acidity)

1 cup pickling salt (non-iodized)

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon onion powder

2 teaspoons turmeric

Place in each Jar:

one stalk or one teaspoon dill weed

dash or one clove garlic

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

METHOD:  Wash bottling jars, lids and rings. (I put mine in the dishwasher on sanitize and that kept them warm so they wouldn’t break when the hot liquid was poured into them).   Place lids in a small saucepan of water and bring to boil.

Place water, vinegar, salt, onion powder and turmeric in stockpot whisk to get out lumps in spices and bring to boil.  Scrub cucumbers and if desired cut them in desired manner. Pull out warm jars and fill with dill, garlic and mustard.  Fill jars with cucumbers.  Pour boiling mixture in jars with a 1/2 “ of head space (to the middle ring on the bottle). Wipe mouth of jar, put on lid and twist on ring finger-tip tight.  Do not tighten more for 12 hours.  Steam bath is optional.

Thanksgiving 2010

I had a great Thanksgiving this year!  It was extra special because one of my best friends, Dayna, came with her new husband Jeff, from Las Vegas to celebrate it with us in our new home.  We had a blast cooking all morning and then taking a break and relaxing and then finishing up at dinner time and having our Thanksgiving Feast together.  We decided that cooking Thanksgiving and having it possible to eat in the afternoon has to take more than one oven.  It really was okay that we had it about 6:30 pm with me.  In fact, I think I was less likely to stuff myself since I had eaten all my meals at a normal time that day and not held off because of the big meal.

Here’s an awful picture of Me and Dayna after cooking all day….right before I ran off to take a shower and freshen up…only to realize that I hadn’t found the box with my blow-dryer in it yet!

Here’s my husband carving the Turkey at the island.

These are my kids waiting pretty patiently for their meal (I gave the baby some faux gourds to play with).  I also am in love with her cute Turkey bib from Carters!

Speaking of faux gourds, I was really proud of myself for noticing some on the bottom self at Joann’s the Monday after Halloween.  They were 75% off and about the same price as gourds from the grocery store but the best thing about these is they will never fade, rot, and are pretty tough.  Love them!  Perfect decorations for a fall flavor.

This is Dayna and Jeff as he is trying to get the “oysters” off of the turkey.

 

My boy, checking out all of the food on the island and hoping to eat soon.  Really, I think he’s eyeing those sweet-potatoes that are my grandma’s amazing recipe.   They are so yummy.  When Dayna and I were figuring out what we wanted to serve for Thanksgiving she mentioned that she and Jeff both didn’t really care for sweet potatoes and I said that we HAD to make my grandma’s recipe and they would be converted, I was right (most people call them yams but I hear that’s technically incorrect so in order to try not to confuse those who call them sweet potatoes and have had really yams, I’ll just call them sweet potatoes).  Jeff went back for more sweet potatoes than anything else during the meal and even got more in the morning with his breakfast he liked them so much.  They are super easy.   Here’s the recipe:

My Grandma’s Sweet-Potatoes (or Thanksgiving Yams)

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wash 6 sweet potatoes and pierce with a fork.   Bake Sweet Potatoes on a cookie sheet for 1-2 hrs until soft…just keep an eye on them, it really depends on the mass of them and how dense they are how long it takes but they start smelling sweet when they are getting softer.

2.  Let baked sweet potatoes cool.  Peel off skins or scoop out pulp.  Place pulp in a bowl.  Add melted butter, salt, and milk to desired consistency (just as you would make mashed potatoes).

3.  Grease a 9x13x2 pan and spread sweet potatoes out.  Sprinkle with marshmallows (about 3/4 of a package).  Bake in a 350 degree oven until marshmallows start looking toasty (about 25 minutes).

4.  Let cool for 10 minutes.  Serve and enjoy.

 

I’m so Thankful that we got to have our great friends join us for the holiday.  It was lots of fun, even if I was feeling a little nutty after moving a week and a half before.  It was wonderful to have them!