Dill Pickles

While it may seem like I'm slacking in the cooking/baking/blog posting departments lately, I must beg to differ. It's late summer and that means I'm up to my ears in canning projects. I suppose I could post all the recipes I'm doing, but it seems redundant and boring to post how to can peaches in a light syrup...you can google all that elsewhere!

As for cooking, I have been mostly grilling super easy fare. Lots of veggies from the garden, cuts of fish or meat from the deep freeze, fresh fruit, and grilled flatbreads are the norm right now. Even if the temperature in my kitchen was somewhat conducive to cooking, I couldn't do much if I wanted to! I needed to update my pots and pans set, so I placed an order with a small local shop for a new set of stainless steel All-Clad. Afraid that it would take me a while to sell my old Calphalon set, I listed it in the paper. Well, they sold very fast and now I am waiting to receive my new pots, getting creative with canning in the limited few that I still have.

I am posting my dill pickle recipe below because it's different than most that are published currently. The Ball Book of Canning uses sugar to temper the vinegar in every recipe, but I do not like the taste of sweet pickles! I tried a few last year and was not impressed, giving most away. Usually the vinegar to water ratio is 1:1 in pickled vegetables, but the following recipe is safe, as long as it's not messed with. Ball actually has the same ratio listed for their dill recipe, but they add sugar and pickling spices too. In this case, sugar is not a preservative; it's for flavor and to temper the sourness of the vinegar. I like my pickles with lots of dill, a little garlic, and no other flavors...bare bones pickles, if you will, more like the classic store bought flavor (only so much better!).

Classic Kosher-Style Dill Pickles

7 lbs pickling cucumbers

7 quart jars, lids, and rings

lots of ice (approx 1 1/2 bags cocktail ice)

cold water

6 cups white vinegar

3/4 cup Kosher salt (or canning/pickling salt will be fine too)

14 garlic cloves, peeled

7-14 dill heads (the flowery part)

Rinse and scrub the cucumbers well. Slice the blossom end off (if you can't tell which is the stem end and which is the blossom end, take a thin slice off each end). Place the cucumbers in a large bin of ice water (I use my kitchen sink) and let them soak at least 2 hours.

Boil your jars at least ten minutes, and bring the lids and rings to boiling as well. When the lid water is boiling you can turn it off and let them stand in the hot water until you need them. Keep the canner boiling, though.

Combine 8 cups cool water, 6 cups vinegar, and 3/4 cup Kosher (or pickling) salt in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil.

Place two garlic cloves and 1-2 heads of dill in each jar (depending on how much dill flavor you like). Pack the cucumbers tightly, to about 1 inch from the top. When all the jars have been filled, ladle the vinegar solution to the tops of the cucs (you should have about 1" head space). Wipe the rims and screw on the lids. Place in the boiling canner, return to a full boil, and process 15 minutes (10 minutes for pints). Turn off the heat, open the lid, and let them stand 5 minutes. Remove to a towel to cool completely before checking the seals. Label with the date and store in a cool, dark place for up to one year. Be sure to not open the jars for at least one month to allow the flavors to blend.