Refrigerator Dill Pickles - Revised Recipe

Recalling the pleasures of growing and gathering foods and preparing them with care, of relishing the changing seasons ... was her way of preserving an important part of American life and sharing its rewards with others.

Judith Jones

We have been searching for a good dill pickle for years. Finally, last year, I stumbled on one, but they were too salty. So, we tweaked the recipe to our liking, and now my mother, siblings, and nieces love them so much that they will actually steal a jar or two from my fridge when we're not looking. And they are so easy to make

First, you will need to find or purchase a gallon glass jar with a lid. You want the mouth large enough to get the pickles in and out without problems. You can purchase them from Amazon. They have plain jars with lids, Empty Glass Gallon Fermentation Jar with Lid 4 pk  for $22.95 or you can get a more decorative jar, Ball Creative container one gallon ideal jar for $12.99. We make our pickles in a gallon jar, and after they ferment in the fridge for a week or so, we transfer them to quart jars. Luckily, my parents had kept the old glass jars from our restaurant. Now, they are hard to find at restaurants - they changed them to plastic.

For this recipe, you will need:

3 lbs. pickles
5 large heads dill
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
16-20 garlic cloves, crushed
3 cups apple cider vinegar
9 cups water
1/2 cup regular salt (Recipe said 1 cup canning or kosher salt)*

Pick pickles that are not overripe or bruised. (Save the overripe pickles for relish.) Wash, and cut off the stem end. Depending on the size of the pickles, you can keep them whole, half, or quarter them.

Boil vinegar, water, and salt. Set to the side and cool to room temperature.



Layer 1/2 dill, pickles, onions, garlic, and rest of dill in gallon jar. Pour cooled brine (vinegar solution) into jar. Refrigerate for 24 hours, and enjoy!

We usually transfer the pickles and brine into quart jars, so my family doesn't steal my glass gallon jar. (They would!)

It's so easy, and they are sooo good that you won't want to stop eating them.

Enjoy,
Aunt Janet (and Uncle Todd)

* Not sure of amount of canning salt - Uncle Todd has been using regular salt.  He had to cut back on the amount of regular salt.

Canning Tomato Sauce

Canning tomatoes are like summer saved all that deep sun kissed flavor ready to enjoy.

Better Homes and Gardens

Tomatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes.  Everywhere I turn, tomatoes.  They are ripening on the vine as I type, beckoning me to go harvest, prepare, and savor their taste.  And, thus, I can, capturing the moment in a little canning jar.

Canning
(Canning tomatoes, revisited from blog)
After years of trying, revising, and cooking tomato sauce, and then not being satisfied with the results, I think I finally figured out the trick of making delicious tomato sauce. The recipes always say to cook until thick. Well, my husband and I would strain the tomatoes with a tomato strainer, put it in a big pot, stir, and stir, and stir a million times more, and after around 8 hours of cooking and stirring, the sauce may be at the consistency that we like (or almost there). Our sauce always turned out tasting acid-y and burnt.

When I started to make tomato sauce this year, I looked at that big pot, and I started to think that maybe the surface wasn't big enough to evaporate the liquid in a shorter period of time. So, I tried a good pan - my Pampered Chef 12" Covered Skillet.  After around 2-1/2 hours (compared to more than 8), my sauce was done and tasted oh so good. 

I discovered that the secret of making good sauce was the pan you used! Even though I am partial to Pampered Chef products, any good skillet will do, you just want to make sure it has a big surface and a thicker bottom. This may be a small investment, but it's well worth it. We use our skillet at least 3 times a week for regular meals. If you are interested in the pots and pans I sell, email me and I will send you a link to my website.   So, here's what I did, step-by-step:
 

 Recipe

Italian Tomato Sauce
makes about 5-6 quarts, depending on desired thickness

30 lbs. or 24 cups tomatoes, skinned, deseeded, and chopped
3 cups onions, chopped
2 cups green peppers, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced, OR 2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbs. salt
1 Tbs. and 1 tsp. of each - basil, oregano, Italian seasoning
1-2 Tbs. brown sugar (to taste)

** If you have never canned before, refer to canning books or sites for instructions.  One such website is Ball Jar's website.

1.  Wash all the tomatoes.

2. Chop and deseed the tomatoes.  I just quartered them.

 

 

 3.  Place the chopped tomatoes in large skillet, and put the temperature up high, stirring ever minute or so. 

 4.  When the liquid came to a boil, turn down the burner to a medium heat, and continue letting it boil (still stirring). The liquid will evaporate, and, in about an hour, you should have about half the liquid.

5.  While it's thickening, sauté onions, green peppers, and garlic until onions are transparent. 

 

6.  Pour as much of the tomatoes and liquid as you can in canning food mill or tomato press.

7.  Let the liquid drain, and return it to the skillet to let it thicken some more.
8.  As it thickens, and keep stirring, and put the tomatoes through the mill or press. 
9.  When the liquid reduces to a thick sauce, and add remaining ingredients except sugar to the skillet.

10.  Let simmer for about an hour so that the flavors would blend into the sauce.
11.  Add sugar, and simmer additional 5-10 minutes.
12.  For canning - As sauce thickens, arrange canning equipment (see canning books or canning websites to determine what equipment you will need).  Remember to sterilize jars, lids, and caps.  I sterilize mine by putting it through the dish washer right before I am going to can.  I try to time it so that the jars are still hot.

 

13.  Can or freeze according to instructions found in canning books. If canned, don't forget to add the lemon juice - 2 Tbs. per quart.

 

14.  And let the bubbles out.

 



Happy canning!
Aunt Janet

Time of Harvest

For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.

For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad.

Edwin Way Teale

I went into the garden today.  With the brisk wind at my face, and two sweatshirts keeping me warm, I gathered the end of the harvest.  The frost might come tonight.

It's a time of harvesting the fruits of your labor, of preserving the fruits of your harvest, of readying oneself for the cold winter months.  In preparation, I have taken this week off - to harvest, preserve, slow down, and enjoy the bounty of His Goodness.

I picked every vegetable that would be harmed by the frost.  As the leaves fell around me, I remember.  Autumn brings a sense of warming to my spirit.  To me, it brings back memories of falling in love.

I found a quote by von fiona.  "The summer months are ideal for flirting, but the time for falling in love has only just begun."  It's a time for cuddling, keeping warm, holding hands while walking in the midst of the autumn color, or cocooning indoors talking and learning about each other.  The cooling temperature draws us closer together for warmth, not just of the body, but of the emotions. 

Summer flirts bring small jolts of happiness felt in the depths of your being.  Autumn loves bring long waves of warming of your heart.

I love autumn with all its majestic color.  It's a time for harvesting, preserving, enjoying the warmth of the home, and falling in love!

Gardening

Today, I picked the last of the harvest - a few cucumbers and peppers, all tomatoes, red and green, and the rest of the beans.  For drying, I cut down my herbs that were planted in the garden, and brought in the herb pots for winter flavoring.

I will wrap the green tomatoes in newspaper, put them in a paper bag, and place the bag in a cool place, where they can ripen slowly.

This week, I will pull up all the dead plants, either put them in the compost pile or burn them, and  rack up the ground.  I'll also check on my cold weather plants to see if they are ready for picking.  And I'll plant the mums I haven't gotten around to plant yet.

Money Making Tip

At the end of this week, two friends and I are having a "Celebrate Fall" sale at our township hall.  We will be selling our direct sales products to whoever would like to attend.  I feel that time as gone by too quickly, and I am behind in my preparations.  The hall is rented, some products have been ordered, the ad has been placed in the local papers, and the invitations are printed.  I need to pass out the invitations, send out emails, and go to local businesses to ask them if I can post a sign.  I'm also thinking about what I should do for outside signs, and where I should place them.  Even though I am starting this vacation week feeling overwhelmed, I know that everything will fall into place, and we will make contacts and sales. 

If you have a home business, think of getting together with a couple more direct sales friends and putting together a holiday sale.  This is a way to make extra money for the holidays, and hopefully expand your clientele.  If anything, you will have loads of fun with your friends.

By the way, if you live anywhere near Braidwood, Illinois, and you would like to hear more about this event, please email me at auntjanetjwlr@sbcglobal.net.  The companies that will be represented are:  Mary Kay (my party), and my 3 businesses (tasty foods, cool kitchen gadgets, and beautiful jewelry).  You know I'm not allowed to say it in my blog. 

Here is a site that talks about the beautiful jewelry - Click Here!  If you'd like to know about the tasty food, become my friend on Facebook - Click Here!  This company posts on my page all the time.  As for my kichen gadgets, you'll just have to think about that one.  If you would like a catalog, or to place an order, please email me at auntjanetjwlr@sbcglobal.net.

Free Stuff

Free Sample of Kelloggs(r) Special K cereal
Free sample of Honey Nut Cheerios(r)
Free Sample of Nestle Abuelita Granulado

Preserving the Harvest,
Aunt Janet