The Family Cookbook: Aunt Ruth's Pickles

I love pickles, especially homemade pickles! I'm not sure if I ever had the pickles made from this recipe or not, but it's for PICKLES, so how could I resist? This recipe comes from one of my aunts, not Aunt Ruth, she would be my great aunt, I think. I wonder if it was a family favorite of the generation before mine? This one is on my to-do list!

This is another open kettle/rebel canning recipe. I am perfectly comfortable with canning this way. Always do your own research and use your own best judgement.

This recipe looks perfect for getting a bumper crop of pickling cucumbers preserved quickly.

Wash cucumbers. Prick each with fork. Pack into quart jars. Pack a dill head or two and garlic buds on top of pickles. Pour boiling hot vinegar mix over cucumbers in jar. Seal tight. Heat oven to 450 degrees then turn oven off before placing jars inside. Set jars in pan and leave in oven for 1 hour before opening oven door.

This recipe assumes we know how to can, so it leaves a lot of instructions out.

Your quart jars, lids and rings must be sterilized in boiling water and set out on clean towels to dry. You could also just keep them in the hot water at a simmer as you get everything else ready. The jars, lids and rings must be in good condition, no cracks, or rust, or damaged seals. For a visual guide to how I do this read this post.

This is a recipe for whole cucumbers. Aunt Ruth didn't say to trim the ends off the cucumbers, but she did say to prick them with a fork. I have no idea how many times. My best guess is several times on each cucumber. I don't see any harm in trimming off the blossom end, the one without the little vine piece sticking out, or both ends, for that matter. You can decide what you'd like to try.

Packing into quart jars means cramming as many cucumbers as you can so they fit tightly.

Dill heads are the flowery tops of the dill plant. I am sure you could use fresh dill if you don't have any heads.

Garlic buds are just like they sound, the bud of the garlic plant before it blooms. I bet they're tasty pickled! I'm sure you could add some peeled cloves of garlic instead.

The water, vinegar, and salt are combined, brought to a boil, and kept at a boil until you're ready to fill your jars packed with cucumbers, dill, and garlic. I'd use a ladle instead of pouring from the pot. Ladle the boiling hot liquid over the the cucumbers, leaving a little head space. The liquid should be about an inch down from the neck of the jar.

Place on the lids and tighten on the rings, good and tight. Heat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Turn off oven before putting the baking pan and jars in the oven. Put pan in oven first, then put the jars in the pan. Close the oven door and leave the jars in the oven for one hour before opening the door.

I think your jars should be sealed by this point. Make sure the jars are not too hot to touch before you test them. Twist the ring off of one and test for the seal of the lid. You should not be able to remove the lids with just your fingers, and the little indent on the top should be indented, not popped up. You could always refrigerate the pickles and eat them from the fridge if the lid doesn't seal, or pop them in a water bath to can.

And that's all, folks! A look back into the food ways of America, and my family, from just a few short generations ago. I hope I get a good supply of picklers this year so I can try this recipe out!

Thanks for being here!