Dill Pickles {recipe}

A few weeks ago a lady in my church sent an email out saying there was an order going in to a local farm for fresh produce. There was lots of produce available, and most of it was for a great price. My friend and I decided to split a box of both pickling and slicing cucumbers. After we got the cucumbers we spent the day pickling them! I had never done it before, but I was surprised and how easy it was! Seriously. And this method doesn’t require any special equipment, like a water bath canner. Just your oven!

Supplies Needed:

• Water
• Vinegar (we used 1 1/2 of the large containers)
• Canning Salt (not regular salt)
• Garlic
• Dill
• Jars (wide mouth are a little easier to work with)
• New lids and bands
• Cucumbers (we had about 30 lbs of slicers and 30 lbs of picklers)

Step 1: Sanitize your jars. Some people just tip them upside down in boiling water, but you could also run them through the hottest cycle of your dishwasher.
Step 2: While your jars are sanitizing, prepare your cucumbers. Slice your slicers (if you’re making sliced pickles) and wash everything.
Step 3: Place 1 head of dill (with little stem) and 2-3 cloves of garlic (put more in if you like it garlicky) in the jars.
Step 4: Pack your cucumbers in tightly. We used quart sized jars for the picklers and pint sized for the slices. If you want you can also added some crispness granules (they are found in the canning aisle).
Step 5: Place the jars in a 250* oven while you make the brine. For the brine bring to a boil 3 qts water, 1 qt vinegar, and 3/4 cup canning salt (we had to do this probably 4 times). Simmer the lids and bands to soften them while you make th brine as well. Take the jars out of the oven. Fill each jar with brine until a 1/2” from the top. Place hot lids and bands on jars. Hand tighten the bands. Place the jars back in the oven for 10 minutes more.
Step 6: Remove the jars from the oven. Let sit over night to make sure the lid has popped down. If the jar has completely cooled and is not popped, heat a new lid and put on the jar and place back in the oven for 10 more minutes.
Step 7: Wait about a week for the pickling process to work, then enjoy some yummy homemade pickles!
After making these with my friend I ended up with 7 qts of whole pickles, and 16 pints of sliced pickles, all for only $32! I definitely say I was worth it!
So how do you make your pickles? Do you use a different method or spices? I want to know!