When your garden gives you cucumbers…
you thank the Lord and make pickles! I’ve been making this refrigerator Dill Pickle recipe in past years, but I decided that this batch would be a sweet variety. I found a recipe on PInterest from this site. She has some great recipes…if you don’t mind scrolling through LOTS of ads that pop up. (Grrr.) The blessing of refrigerator pickles is that you don’t have to can them. They can stay in your fridge for a couple of months.
Sweet Refrigerator Pickles
Ingredients
- 1 gallon cucumbers, sliced into coins or spears
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 1 – 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- fresh dill
- 1 – 2 small-sized grape leaves, optional
Brine:
- 4 c. water
- 2 c. white vinegar
- 1 3/4 c. sugar
- 1/4 c. salt
- 1 tsp. dill seed, optional
INSTRUCTIONS
- Wash, remove the ends, and cut the cucumbers into approx. 1/4 inch thick slices or cut them into spears.1 gallon cucumbers, sliced into coins or spears
- Add half of the onion slices, one sliced garlic clove, a couple of sprigs of fresh dill, and a grape leaf to the bottom of a large gallon jar.1 small onion, sliced,1 – 2 garlic cloves, sliced,fresh dill,1 – 2 small-sized grape leaves, optional. See note below.
- Fill the jar with sliced or speared cucumbers, leaving enough room at the top to add the remaining garlic, onion, dill, and grape leaf.
- In a large cooking pot, mix the water, vinegar, sugar, salt, and dill seed. Bring it to a boil, then pour over the top of the cucumbers. Wipe the top and seal with the lid. Cool. Store in the refrigerator for up to a couple of months. They are ready to start eating after 24 hours.
- Note: Grape leaves are supposed to help keep the pickles crisp. If you don’t have any, you can replace them by adding 1/4 tsp. alum to the pickle brine. I used the alum and the pickles are very crispy!
This recipe is a fun, delicious and easy way to make good use of those cucumbers that accumulate faster than AARP invites at a 64 year-old’s mailbox! (Ask me how I know about both of those!) It’s also so rewarding to see those beautiful jars lined up in your fridge! You can feel domestic without having to deal with canning! Make up a batch and then spread the wealth with your friends and neighbors!
Refresh your garden bounty with some sweet pickles!
RefreshHer 