PICKLE PLATE APPY
Pickled asparagus, red peppers, red onions, golden raisins, button mushrooms, shallot
halves, spindly farmstand carrots, curried cauliflower, each pickle infused with its
own herbs and spices.....not a single cucumber in sight.
Here it is! My notes are in parentheses.
Jackie Clay’s Bread-and-Butter Pickles:
-4 Quarts sliced cucumbers (I use zucchini, summer squash, or green tomatoes, and I shred or grind them for relish instead of slicing.)
-6 medium onions, sliced (I use pearl onions and leave them whole.)
-1/2 cup pickling salt
-1 quart cracked ice
-3 cups white vinegar
-1 cup sugar
-2 Tbsp. Mustard seeds
-1 tsp Turmeric
-2 tsp celery seed
(I usually slice some multi-colored sweet peppers and substitute them for 1/3 of the onions. Mainly for color.)
Rinse cucumbers thoroughly, remove stem and blossom ends, and slice thin (or chop fine). Do not peel cucumbers (although some types of summer squash might need peeled). Mix cucumbers, onions, (peppers), and salt. Add cracked ice and let stand for 3 hours, then drain thoroughly. This will help make the pickles crisp. (I have a designated “pickle draining” cloth that I cut from a cotton bedsheet and only wash with dish soap and bleach. It’s not allowed in the laundry, but gets treated like a dish.)
Combine remaining ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Add drained vegetables, and heat just until boiling, stirring constantly. DO NOT OVERCOOK!
Pack boiling hot pickles in sterilized hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Ladle hot pickling syrup over pickles, leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim of jar clean, secure lid, and process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath canner.
(When making relish, I usually leave a bit more headspace, and then shake the jars once a day after they’ve cooled, for about 2 weeks. Otherwise I had jars where part of the food stuck out above the brine and spoiled. After 2 weeks, the food will have soaked up enough of the brine to be resistant to spoilage.
Shaking also works air bubbles out, which is important with thicker relishes.
When making relish with green tomatoes, don’t drain them quite as thoroughly. They’ll absorb liquid if you squeeze too much out at the draining stage, and then there won’t be enough brine to cover. Although you could also increase the amount of brine to compensate.)
PICKLE PLATE APPY
Pickled asparagus, red peppers, red onions, golden raisins, button mushrooms, shallot
halves, spindly farmstand carrots, curried cauliflower, each pickle infused with its
own herbs and spices.....not a single cucumber in sight.
Thank you! I have a similar recipe which is for Ice Pickles. I had some for supper earlier.