Pickles Two Ways with the makers Ball® home canning products | From Garden to Table
This post is sponsored by the makers of Ball® home canning products.*
As a mother, one of my priorities has been to build an intimate relationship with our food. I’m not striving for perfection but I’m hoping to build a knowledge of where the food comes from, how much work goes into growing food, how it nourishes + sustains us so that one day they have the knowledge and skills to take care of themselves + others. Growing food is fundamental to our lives. Food doesn’t just appear on a shelf, it takes many hands, hours, resources, and labor to keep us alive, much of which is unseen + exploited.
Growing a garden is rooting myself in that process. Growing a garden for them is providing them with wonder. I’m astonished everytime little seed I bury in the soil grows. It’s important to me, my children know while it is a miracle it is because they watered the plants, had the patience to wait + watch + weed. While it is seemingly a gift that comes out of nowhere it is the product of time, attention. + inputs.
Cucumbers are the highlight of midsummer. Last year this recipe was a hit with Griffin and this year, he was the first to spot our cucumber trellis filling in, and he let me know he was ready to help me pick cucumbers to make into his favorite jars of pickles. This year I decided to experiment with pickles two ways. The first being our favorite Ball(R) Kosher Dill Pickle Spears and Ball(R) Sliced Dill Pickles in Ball(R) New Nesting Jars. Harvested cucumbers on the table, bunches of dill and cloves of garlic harvested from our garden is a seasonal scene that signals in our hearts + mind the abundance of the summer season is here. This is hopefully the first small batch of many to be put up.
Number 1: Ball® Kosher Dill Pickle Spears
Preserving Method: Water Bath Canning
Makes about 4 Pint Jars
Ingredients
2 ½ lbs. (1.1 kg) 3-4 inch pickling cucumbers
2- ½ cups (590 mL) water
2 cups (500 mL) white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar (60 mL)
1/4 cup (60 mL) Ball® Salt for Pickling and Preserving
4 cloves garlic
4 small bay leaves
12 dill sprigs
2 tsp (10 mL) yellow mustard seeds
4 small hot peppers (optional)
Directions
Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready to use, do not boil. Wash lids in warm soapy water and set aside with bands.
Wash cucumbers and hot peppers in cold water. Slice 1/16 of an inch off the blossom end of each cucumber; trim stem ends so cucumbers measure about 3 inches. Cut cucumbers into quarters lengthwise.
Combine water, vinegar, sugar and salt in a small stainless saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat to simmer.
Place 1 garlic clove, 3 dill sprigs, ½ tsp mustard seed, 1 bay leaf, 1 red pepper, and Ball® Pickle Crisp (if desired) into a hot jar. Pack cucumber spears into jar, leaving a ½ inch headspace. Trim any cucumbers that are too tall.
Ladle hot brine into a hot Ball(R) jar leaving a ½ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rim. Center lid on jar and apply band, adjust to fingertip tight. Place jar in boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
Process jars 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat, remove lid, let jars stand 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool 12-24 hours. Check lids for seal, they should not flex when center is pressed
Number 2: Sliced Dill Pickles
Makes about 5 (16 oz) pint jars
Ingredients
13 cups sliced trimmed pickling cucumbers (1/4-inch lengthwise slices)
3 Tbsp Ball® Mixed Pickling Spice
4 cups cider vinegar
4 cups water
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup Ball® Salt for Pickling & Preserving
5 bay leaves
5 cloves garlic
2 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
5 heads fresh dill
Directions
Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars in simmering water until ready to use. Do not boil. Wash lids in warm soapy water and set aside with bands.
Tie pickling spice in a square of cheesecloth, creating a spice bag, if desired.
Combine vinegar, water, sugar, pickling salt and spice bag in a large stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar and salt. Reduce heat and boil gently for 15 minutes, until spices have infused the liquid.
Place 1 bay leaf, 1 garlic clove, 1/2 tsp mustard seeds and 1 head of dill into a hot jar. Pack cucumber slices into jar leaving a 1/2 inch headspace. Ladle hot pickling liquid into jar to cover cucumbers leaving a 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and re-measure headspace. If needed, add more pickling liquid to meet recommended headspace. Wipe jar rim. Center lid on jar and apply band, adjust to fingertip tight. Place jar in boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
Process jars 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat, remove lid, let jars stand 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool 12-24 hours. Check lids for seal, they should not flex when center is pressed.
Canning tips
Pickling cucumbers are small, crisp, unwaxed, and needn’t be peeled. Wide mouth jars aren’t essential for pickles, but they do make for easier packing. You can add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water bath canner to prevent calcium build up on your jars.
*Disclosure: This is a sponsored post that is part of an ongoing partnership with the Fresh Preserving Division of Newell Brands. They have provided jars, equipment and monetary compensation. All thoughts and opinions expressed remain my own.