Old Fashioned Sweet Cucumber Pickle Recipes

Steps:

• In a large nonreactive bowl, combine cucumbers, onion and salt. Cover with crushed ice and mix well. Let stand 3 hours. Drain; rinse and drain thoroughly., In a Dutch oven, combine sugar, water, vinegars, mustard seed, celery seed and peppercorns. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add cucumber mixture; return to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 4-5 minutes or until heated through., Carefully ladle hot mixture into 4 hot wide-mouth 1-pint jars, leaving 1/2-in. headspace. Add 3 garlic cloves and 1 bay leaf to each jar. Remove air bubbles and, if necessary, adjust headspace by adding hot pickling liquid. Wipe rims. Center lids on jars; screw on bands until fingertip tight. , Place jars into canner with simmering water, ensuring that they are completely covered with water. Bring to a boil; process for 10 minutes. Remove jars and cool.

Steps:

• Gently scrub pickles with a vegetable brush and rinse with cool water. Dry thoroughly. In a large stoneware crock or a deep enamel kettle sprinkle in half of pickling spices, dill and garlic over the bottom. Layer cucumbers in crock, filling to within 3 inches of top. Sprinkle with remaining pickling spices, dill and garlic. Mix vinegar with salt and 2 quarrts of water. Pour over cucumbers, to cover. Weight with a plate and cans, making sure cucumbers are completely submerged. Cover loosely with cheesecloth. Check pickles each day and skim off scum as it forms -- it may not begin to form until fifth day. Do not stir pickles, but make sure they remain completely submerged in brine at all times. If necessary, add additional brine. Leave for 3 to 4 weeks. Pickles will turn an olive-drab color and texture will be soft-crisp and be uniformly translucent. Let stand or an additional month to develop flavor, replacing brine as necessary.;

Steps:

• STEP ONE: Cut cucumbers in 1/2 inch pieces or a little larger and place in a crock or large glass container. Bring the soaking brine to a boil, pour over cut cucumbers, cover with a clean cloth and weigh down with a plate. Cover crock with a clean tea towel.
• Let stand three days.
• STEP TWO: Drain, put back in crock and cover with fresh water. There is no salt added to this.
• Let stand two days.
• STEP THREE: Drain and place back in crock.
• Bring the pickle solution with the alum to a boil and simmer two minutes pour over.
• Stand overnight.
• STEP FOUR: Drain and place back in crock. Make Sweet Pickle brine, bring to a boil and pour over. For three days drain this syrup into a large pot and bring to a boil. Pour back over the cucumber slices. The third day once again bring the syrup to a boil. Put pickles into sterilized jars, pour hot brine over and seal.
• I often replace some of the cucumber pieces with cauliflower chunks, making for a mixed sweet pickle.
• Makes about eight pints.