Making Pickles

Dill pickles were made this week. Four gallons. Bread and butter, too; one gallon. How, you ask? Well, let me show you.

Acquire and wash pickling cucumbers. Mine were acquired from the wife of the man who sells me apples and pears. He'd sell me peaches, too, but the winters/early springs have not been kind lately. He (and she) lives about 15 minutes away.



Sometimes it's fun to ask a friend to help. This is Pistol Packin' Presbytera, who has been visiting this week. We've eaten too much and laughed alot, stayed up too late and spent very little, but time with each other. It's been fun.



She was loading the cukes into the crock which would be their home until we eat them all. It starts looking like this



and ends up looking like this.



Spices are added; mixed pickling spices, dill and bay leaves. And garlic. And more garlic. Don't forget garlic.



Then brine is poured over. Brine is just water which has been heated so that some salt will dissolve in it. Vinegar is added, and, for these pickles, I cool the brine.

Then I put a small plate on top of the pickles, so they won't float up out of the brine. I cover it with plastic wrap; this is because I was poor when I bought the crocks and by the time I got to go back and get lids, they had stopped selling them. Even online I haven't found them. So you know they aren't out there.

And here they are, covered and weighted and ensconced in my refrigerator. They will start tasting like pickles in about three weeks. They will get better and better as time goes on, peaking around Christmas. If my family doesn't eat them all beforehand, they'll be served at Christmas dinner.

These are great dill pickles. And I owe it all to my friends; Presbytera, for helping, and Marie, who gave me the recipe in the first place.