Dill Pickles

Homemade dill pickles...just like the ones my mother used to make...are on my 'to do' list every summer. There's just something about homemade dills that can't be found on the storeshelf! This is my mom's recipe...the same pickles I grew up with.


Ingredients:

• 10 pounds of pickling cukes (yield about 8 jars)
• 5 cups white vinegar used for pickling
• 13 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup pickling salt…coarse
• garlic pieces (peeled and cut in half)…two pieces per jar
• fresh dill
• small dried red chili peppers…one or two pieces for each jar

Method:

1. Wash cucumbers well...and leave in tub of cold water while packing jars.
2. Mix vinegar, water, sugar and the salt in a large pot. Stir the mixture well. Heat to a rapid boil on medium-high….then keep simmering while filling jars.
3. Prepare wide-mouth 1-quart jars. In each jar, put 1 piece of garlic, one head of dill, two small chili peppers and then enough cucumbers to fill the jar. Then add one more garlic piece and another sprig of dill.
4. Fill jars slowly with the hot brine and seal (being sure to clean all residue from the top of the rim of the jar first).
5. Place the lidded jars in boiling water bath for about 15 minutes…water in canner should cover the tops of the jars.
6. The pickles should be stored in a cool place for two months before serving. (So they say...I’m not sure we ever waited that long!)
   
   *If your water is hard, high in mineral content or has chlorine added, use bottled water.
   ** Pack the cukes into the jars really tight…they shrink as they are processed.

If you like a little zip to your pickles...be generous with the red chili peppers!

Enjoy!

Blue-barb Jam

Char, another gal from MGCC was so gracious to give me this recipe..I am honoured to share it here, with her permission of course. It is a unique and interesting jam..I would have never thought to put these ingredients together. You are right Char..this jam is very good on scones! And on toast or freshly baked buns..

These are the ingredients you will need:

6 cups cut up rhubarb

1 cup water

3 cups sugar

1- 540 ml can of blueberry pie filling

1- 6 oz raspberry jello powder

...as I said this is a unique recipe. Never thought to put these together did you?

Over high heat boil rhubarb and water till the rhubarb is soft stirring the whole time, this takes only a few min.

Add 3 cups sugar and blueberry pie filling, and bring back to a boil. Turn down heat to med high and boil for 8 min.

Remove from heat and add the jello powder.

Ladle into pre-washed and still hot jelly jars.

Yields: 31/2 500ml jelly jars

Here it is a bubblin' away in the pot. It is good to use a tall pot as the jam tends to splatter as it cooks..I used a tall pot and I still got some splatters on me and on the wall. I use a red floral bibbed apron when I make jams and jellies just so I stay clean and the stains never show on the apron!

It is really a very simple jam to make so go ahead and try it..just make sure you have fresh scones ready!

Light & Runny Strawberry Jam

When I first started making jam many years ago, I was a little confused with the many suggested ways to do jam. Some talked about cooking it until it’s done, some said not to use pectin, the recipes called for too much sugar . . . you get the idea.
Being a bit of a perfectionist, I couldn’t just wing it and have the jam turn out a little different every year. I wanted it to be exactly right … not too sweet, not too hard, not too runny. . . so I've worked on it over the years and got it to where our family likes it, runny enough to use a spoon to spread a scone or fill that little hole on a Zwieback for Sunday Faspa.

Tools/Accessories:

• blender or immersion blender
• good quality, large stainless steel pot
• wooden spoon
• canning funnel
• clean jars and lids

Suggested amounts of ingredients needed for 24 - 30 cups of jam (12 - 15 pints):

• 1 15lb flat of strawberries
• 4 kg sugar (10 lbs)
• 3 pkgs. Certo light brand pectin OR 4 pkgs (other) regular pectin crystals
• 4 tsp margarine

Ahead of time:  Wash jars and rings. While  jam is cooking, sterilize jars by heating in a 225 F oven for 10 minutes and keep warm until needed. Heat rubber lids in a small pot of boiling water and keep hot.

Berry Prep: Wash berries before stemming. Crush about 3 cups of berries at a time. With a good blender, pulse for 5 seconds, stopping to shake fruit to the bottom so as not to over-blend OR  fill an ice cream pail - a third full - and use an immersion blender to crush. If berries are very ripe you can use a potato masher. Pureed berries should still be of a thick and slightly chunky consistency. Collect crushed berries in a lard bowl or ice cream pails until done. I usually do this in the evening and refrigerate the berries to cook the next day.  (15 lbs of berries will make 4 batches - or about 30 cups jam)

Measure and set aside seperately:

• 6 cups mashed berries
• 4 1/4 c sugar
• 3 Tbsp Certo light OR 1 pkg regular pectin crystals mixed with ¼ cup sugar

To cook:

1. Place fruit and pectin crystals mixed with 1/4 c sugar into a large pot. (Pot should only be about 1/3 full.) 
2. Place over high heat on an element that keeps the most consistent heat,  and stir constantly with wooden spoon, until it comes to a bubbling boil.
3. Stir in remaining sugar. Continuing to stir, add 1 tsp margarine to keep the foam down and cook until mixture comes to a full, rolling boil again. (you can hear it) Set timer for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Turn heat down slightly if it splatters too much, but keep the boil. 
4. Remove from heat and continue to stir for a few minutes until clear and shiny. Crush any large floating berry pieces with a fork against the side of the pot if needed. Ladle hot jam into jars until 1/2 inch from rim. Cover with lids and screw rings to seal.

* The jam will be runny until it's completely cooled.

* Important note: Freezing the jam (once it's cooled) keeps it fresher tasting and it’s not necessary to seal the jars. Even keeping sealed jars refrigerated keeps the flavor fresher tasting than just having it sit in the pantry.

* You can freeze blended berries in 6 cup proportions, ready to cook in the winter, but you will need a bit more certo. (I freeze in 9 cup proportions, add 6 cups sugar and 1 pkg pectin with thawed mixture. This makes about 12 small jars)