The great thing about pickled vegetables is your ability to use any variety of fresh veggies you have on hand. While leafy greens won’t work so well (besides cabbage), you can really get creative with what’s fresh, local and, possibly, growing in your own garden. Use this mixed pickled vegetables recipe as a baseline, adding or subtracting veggies to suit your taste.

Pickled Vegetables Recipe

Yields about 5 pints

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 pounds pickling cucumbers 3 to 4 inches in length, sliced ½-inch thick (cut off and discard both ends of the cucumbers)
2 cups fluted carrot slices cut ½ inch thick (use a fluted garnishing cutter)
2 cups celery slices cut diagonally ½ inch thick
2 cups trimmed and peeled pearl onions
20 strips red bell peppers cut ½ inch wide by 3 inches long (about 2 large peppers)
3 cups small cauliflower flowerets (about 1 small head of cauliflower)
16 cups cold, distilled water
1 cup canning salt
2 cups sugar
¼ cup mustard seed
2 tablespoons celery seed
6½ cups white vinegar (5 percent acidity)

Directions

THE FIRST DAY: in an 8-quart, stainless steel kettle, place the prepared cucumbers, carrots, celery, onions, peppers, and cauliflower; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, place the distilled water and canning salt; stir until the salt dissolves. Then, pour the salt water over the vegetables in the kettle. Cover the kettle; let stand, in a cool place, 12 to 18 hours.

12 TO 18 HOURS LATER: Drain the vegetables thoroughly; set aside.

In a clean, 8-quart, heavy-bottomed, stainless steel kettle, place the sugar, mustard seed, celery seed, and vinegar; stir to combine. Over medium-high heat, bring the vinegar mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Cover the kettle. Reduce the heat and boil the vinegar mixture 3 minutes. add the vegetables. Cover the kettle and return the mixture to a simmer.

Simmer the vegetables, covered, 5 minutes. Remove from the heat; let stand.

Drain hot, sterilized, widemouthed, pint jars with straight sides, upside down, on a clean tea towel.

Decoratively arrange the vegetables (without liquid) in the jars, leaving ½-inch headspace.

Using a 1-cup measuring cup with a pouring spout, cover the vegetables in the jars with the hot vinegar mixture, maintaining ½-inch headspace.

Using a plastic knife or a narrow, rubber spatula, remove the air bubbles in the jars. Then, check the headspace in each jar and if necessary, add additional hot vinegar mixture to maintain ½-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims and threads.

Place hot, metal lids on the jars and screw the bands firmly.

Process in a boiling-water canner for the time shown in the processing times chart at the end of this recipe.

Remove the jars from the canner and place them on a dry, wooden board that has been covered with a tea towel. Let

the jars stand, undisturbed, 12 hours to cool completely.

Processing times for pint and quart-size jars

Altitude of Canning Location
0 to 1,001 ft above sea level: 15 minutes
1,000 ft 6,000 ft: 20 minutes
6,000 ft and higher: 25 minutes

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The post Blue Ribbon Country Canning: Pickled Vegetables Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.

Rhubarb is a special summertime treat. For those want to enjoy it year-round, though, you can capture the flavor of summer by canning rhubarb. You’ll thank yourself on that cold wintery day when you need a little extra summer warmth to get you through.

Yields about 6 pints (3 quarts)

Ingredients

4½ pounds rhubarb
1½ cups sugar

Directions

Wash the rhubarb and cut it into 2-inch lengths. Measure 12 cups of cut rhubarb and place them in a 12-quart, heavy-bottomed, stainless steel kettle. Add the sugar; stir lightly. Cover the kettle. Let stand 4 hours to draw juice out of the rhubarb.

Then, drain hot, sterilized, pint or quart jars, upside down, on a clean tea towel. Let stand.

Over medium-high heat, bring the rhubarb mixture to a boil, stirring continuously. Boil the rhubarb 10 seconds only.

Remove from the heat. Using a slotted spoon, pack the hot rhubarb (without syrup) into the prepared jars, leaving ½-inch headspace.

Using a 1-cup measuring cup with a pouring spout, cover the rhubarb in the jars with the hot syrup, maintaining ½-inch headspace. Using a plastic knife or a narrow, rubber spatula, remove the air bubbles in the jars. Then, check the headspace in each jar and if necessary, add additional syrup to maintain ½-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims and threads. Place hot, metal lids on the jars and screw the bands firmly.

Process in a boiling-water canner for the time shown in the processing times chart at the end of this recipe.

Remove the jars from the canner and place them on a dry, wooden board that has been covered with a tea towel. Let the jars stand, undisturbed, 12 hours to cool completely.

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Capture all the sweet flavor of summer’s strawberry bounty with this simple, traditional strawberry jam recipe. The recipe makes plenty of strawberry jam, so you’ve got plenty to eat and share.

Strawberry Jam Recipe

Yields about 8 pints

Ingredients

8 cups hulled strawberries (5 cups crushed strawberries; see recipe procedures, below)
7 cups sugar
1 1  3/4-ounce package powdered fruit pectin

Directions

Wash and sort the strawberries quickly in cold water; drain in a colander. Hull the strawberries, using a strawberry huller.

Measure 8 cups hulled strawberries. in a flat-bottomed pan, crush the strawberries, 1/3 at a time, using a pastry blender.

Do not puree the strawberries; leave nice-sized pieces, which will be attractive in the jam. Place the crushed strawberries, with the juice, in a mixing bowl.

Measure 5 cups crushed strawberries, including the juice, and place in an 8-quart, heavy-bottomed, stainless steel kettle; set aside. Place the sugar in a large mixing bowl; set aside.

Drain hot, sterilized, half-pint jars, upside down, on a clean tea towel; let stand.

Add the pectin to the crushed strawberries in the kettle; stir well to combine. Over high heat, bring the strawberry mixture to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Immediately add the sugar and return the strawberry mixture to a rolling boil over high heat, stirring continuously. Boil the mixture at a rolling boil exactly 1 minute (use a timer), stirring constantly. Immediately remove from the heat and skim the foam off the strawberry jam, using tableware tablespoons and teaspoons.

Using a 1-cup measuring cup with a pouring spout, quickly pour the hot jam into the drained jars, leaving ¼-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims and threads. Place hot, metal lids on the jars and screw the bands firmly.

Process in a boiling-water canner for the time shown in the processing times chart at the end of this recipe.

Remove the jars from the canner and place them on a dry, wooden board that has been covered with a tea towel. Let the jars stand, undisturbed, 12 hours to cool completely.

Canning Processing Times

For Half-Pint Jar Sizes
Altitude of Canning Location
0 to 1,001 ft: 5 minutes
1,000 ft to 6,000 ft: 10 minutes
6,000 ft+ : 15 minutes

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The post Blue Ribbon Country Canning: Strawberry Jam Recipe appeared first on EcoSalon.