School Girl Pickle Food

CRISP SWEET PICKLE RECIPE

Steps:

• Day 1: Clean cucumbers and soak in ice cold water bath for 30 minutes. Drain cucumbers, trim ends, then cut into thick chunks. Pack cucumbers in a gallon sized food safe jar. Cover with boiling water. Let sit 24 hours.
• Day 2: Drain water from cucumber slices. Add salt. Pour boiling water over top of cucumbers and salt. Cover and let sit 24 hours.
• Day 3: Drain cucumbers. Add alum. Pour boiling water over cucumbers to cover. Cover and let sit 24 hours.
• Day 4: Drain cucumbers. Place pickling spice in cheesecloth tied with string to form purse. Place in jar with cucumbers. Bring cider vinegar to a boil. Pour over cucumbers.
• Day 5 and Day 6: Do nothing.
• Day 7: Drain cucumbers reserving juice. Remove cheesecloth with pickling spices and discard. Place cucumbers in large mixing bowl. Pour sugar over top of cucumbers and toss to coat. Let sit at least 2 hours.
• Heat reserved cucumber juice until scalding. Pack pickles into hot sterilized jars. Pour hot cucumber juice over top of pickles. Cover and seal.

SCHOOL GIRL PICKLE

Steps:

• Make brine to float an egg. (this blew my mind! -- so I researched it. This would be a 10% brine solution - 1 1/2 cups of salt to 1 gallon of water. Needless to say, I did float the egg, and this is actually the easiest way, as your amounts of water will vary according to size of crock and amount of cucumbers). The brine needs to be kept at about this % during the 2-3 week period.
• Let cucumbers soak in this 2-3 weeks, skimming and adding salt as needed. Making sure that the cukes stay submerged. (I use a plate with a glass paperweight to hold things down.).
• Take out cucumbers and cut into slices (1/4-1/8" rounds).
• Soak in fresh water overnight.
• Drain.
• Soak in alum water (7 tablespoons to each 6 pounds) for 6 hours. Pour off alum water.
• Heat vinegar (enough to cover cukes) to scalding point and pour over cucumbers.
• Let this stand for 24 hours.
• Pour off vinegar and discard. (This makes Michael crazy!).
• Pack in crock alternating layers of cucumbers, layers of sugar and spices until all cucumbers are used.
• Let stand for 3 days and pickles are ready for use.
• I pack into sterile jars, putting some in our pantry, and give some as gifts.
• I don't process, as they are pickles -- brined, vinegared, and very sweet, but if you like you can process for 10 minutes.