Not sure if you've heard, but a couple of weekends ago was National Can-It-Forward Day. The exact purpose of this day is a little hazy to me so I took it as National Canning Day. Is that bad? Any-whoo, I woke up on Saturday morning and went straight to the Farmers Market. My intention going into this day was to make some cherry, blueberry and raspberry jams. The cherries we're on sale at my local market for $1.98/lb so I bought 10 lbs the previous day. That left the blueberries and raspberries. However, the first thing that I saw after I parked was a little old lady selling pickling cucumbers by the 5 gallon bucket for $10. Pickles are something I haven't jumped into yet because I was under the impression that the cukes weren't ready yet. Or so I thought. At $10 for roughly 25 lbs, I could not pass that deal up. So now I added pickles to the list of stuff to make. Moving on with my venture, I found someone selling boatloads of green beans. Dilly beans anyone?? I picked up 3 lbs of those while I was at it. Blueberries were being sold at $1/pint but if you bought a case of 12 it was only $10. Pick 'em up! Raspberries were the only bummer of the day. While the berries were 'a plenty, the prices were out of my budget. Everyone wanted $5/pint for them and I needed 3 quarts worth. In the end I would have been making a $30 jam. So I opted to purchase 3 quarts of strawberries for $3 instead. Much more budget friendly! On the way out, I picked up some dill heads for the pickles then headed home to get my can on.
Here's a recap of what was on the docket to make:
- Cherry Pie Filling
- Cherry Jam
- Cherry Infused Vodka
- Cherry Balsamic Preserves
- Strawberry Jam
- Blueberry Jam
- Bread and Butter Pickles
- Spicy Dill Pickles
- Dill Relish
- Dilly Beans
Something told me I was going to need more then one day to get this all done. It took four, actually. Day one, I made all the jams. 
Day 2 was the pie filling and vodka infusion (that was after a 2 hour cherry pitting spree, mind you).
Day 3, I made the relish along with the bread and butter pickles.
Day 4 yielded the dilly beans and dill pickles. The majority of the recipes were found either on Pinterest, The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, or Food In Jars. The dill pickles came to me from a family recipe which I will share with you today. So let's get started, shall we?
Start by sterilizing 8 quart size wide-mouth jars in a large pot. Mine only holds 4 at a time, so I had to do this in batches. In a small sauce pan, simmer the lids. Next, you'll need 10 lbs of pickling cucumbers. Give them a good washing to remove any dirt. Chop off the ends of the cukes and either slice into quarters or into sandwich slices using a mandolin.
Once I reached the bottom of the barrel, I noticed that I had some mini's in there so I made a jar of little guys that were left unsliced (but still with the ends removed).
In a separate pot, bring 4 cups of white vinegar, 8 cups of water and 1 cup of canning salt to a boil.
Remove the jars from the water bath and pack each one with the sliced cucumbers along with 2 garlic cloves, 2-4 heads of dill and 2-6 dry red pepper pods(depending on the level of spice you like).
At the top of each jar, place 1 grape leaf.
The grape leaves are to ensure you get a crispy pickle. Not all grocery stores carry them, but if they do then you will most likely find them in the condiment isle near the olives.
Fill the jars with the vinegar solution leaving 1/2" headspace at the top.
Tap each jar on a towel to remove any air bubbles and wipe the rims of each with a clean cloth before placing the lids and rings on. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, uncover and leave for another 5 minutes. The only downer is that you have to wait 6-8 weeks to taste the finished product.
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| Processed vs. Unprocessed |
Spicy Dill Pickles
10 Lbs pickling cucumbers
16-32 dill heads
16-48 dry red pepper pods
16 garlic cloves
8 grape leaves
8 cups water
4 cups white vinegar
1 cup canning salt
8 wide mouth quart jars
Sterilize the jars in a large pot. In a small sauce pan, simmer the lids. Wash the cucumbers to remove any dirt. Chop off the ends of the cukes and slice into quarters. In a separate pot, bring 4 cups of white vinegar, 8 cups of water and 1 cup of canning salt to a boil. Remove the jars from the water bath and pack each one with the sliced cucumbers along with 2 garlic cloves, 2-4 heads of dill and 2-6 dry red pepper pods(depending on the level of spice you like). At the top of each jar, place 1 grape leaf. Fill the jars with the vinegar solution leaving 1/2" headspace at the top. Tap each jar on a towel to remove any air bubbles and wipe the rims of each with a clean cloth before placing the lids and rings on. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, uncover and leave for another 5 minutes. Store in a dark place for 6-8 weeks.
