I love that everyone I know is canning and pickling this summer. It’s such a great way to preserve the harvest for later and it’s so gratifying to put up your own food.
Pickles are great for beginners because they are high enough in acid that they don’t need to be pressure canned and may even be made in small batches and simply refrigerated.
Pickled vegetables are versatile as snacks, delicious on sandwiches and can be chopped up in summer salads. And if you have any left you can always put them out at Thanksgiving on a relish tray full of goodies you made yourself.
Here’s a sampling of tasty pickles from around the web.
A little sweet, a little tart, bread and butter pickles are great on sandwiches and served with creamy goat cheese. This version from Smitten Kitchen looks like a winner.
Pickled okra is a classic Southern table pickle. I turn to Martha for her version.
Dilly Beans are great for snacking and in Bloody Marys. Here’s a recipe from Food in Jars, which is, incidentally, one of my favorite canning resources on the web.
Image: The Bitten Word