Thursday, July 26, 2012

Thursday's Kitchen Cupboard.................07/26/2012

I've been trying to get some of the more time consuming canning projects done before the tomato glut starts. This past week I made one batch of Bread & Butter Pickles and one batch of Sweet Pickle Relish.

I use the recipe from the Ball Blue Book of Canning for the Bread & Butter Pickles. I use less onions then the recipe calls for and ended up with 4 pints. Since there was quite a bit of liquid left over, I'm going to add some additional cucumbers to the next batch. These pickles need to sit for awhile to acquire good flavor before you eat them. We still have one jar left from last year. So, we are in good shape.

I also use the Ball Blue Book recipe for Sweet Pickle Relish. Lat year I made two different relishes from the Ball Blue Book. "The Italian" likes the Sweet Pickle Relish the best.....and boy does he like his relish!! I do make one change to the recipe by adding some tumeric to it. The relish also needs to sit for a few weeks to obtain a good flavor.

Due to my work hours, I won't be commenting on your posts and comments until dinner time.

What's been going in or out of your Kitchen Cupboard lately????

41 comments:

  1. Is the bread and butter pickle similar to piccallili?

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    1. I've never had piccalilli. So, I have no idea. Bread & Butter pickles are a sweet pickle.

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  2. So far I haven't been able to find good recipe for pickles that are not all vinegary. Might just stick to regular fridge pickles.

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    1. I really like the dill refrigerator pickles. Have you tried making them in a crock or glass container? The recipe is in the Ball Blue Book.

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  3. I make the same sweet pickle relish from the Blue Book. My family loves it, it is so much better than any you can purchase.

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    1. Everything homemade is so much better then store bought....isn't it???

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  4. Good luck at work today! I hope you are adjusting ok. Smart of you to try to catch up with canning while you can. The tomatoes will be hitting heavy any time now. My mother recently mentioned that she liked the pickles I made several years ago. I haven't made them in a while because we just don't eat a lot of pickles, but I will make some more for her.

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    1. Today was my second day and I feel great! Nothing like getting back into the work routine! I was going to go to the plots and harvest. But, we are having a terrible storm right now.

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  5. I love bread and butter pickles. I use a variation of the Ball Blue Book recipe too. I still have some from last year, which is a good thing because we don't have many cukes this year.

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    1. Too bad about your cucs. But it's great that you still have some B&B pickles left from last year!

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  6. Robin, I didn't grow any cukes this year. The first planting something ate them right down to the ground. The second planting didn't even come up. Last year I tried to make pickles but they came out mushy. I like crisp and crunch pickles. I think I cooked them too long in the canner. So I'm going with the squash that seems to be prolific this year. The tomatoes are doing OK as long as I keep hauling water. We had a token rain last night. It was only .17 inch after 35 days without rain and temperatures in the middle 90s to 100+. I hardly consider it a rain. Now there's days with 10 percent changes of rain which in my mind means "NO RAIN". My water bill this month is going to be horrendous.

    Congrats on the new job .... I think. If things keep going the way they are, I might have to come out of retirement too.

    Have a great canning day.

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    1. David, We have been lucky the past two weeks or so. We have been getting some nice rain every few days. It's raining right now. Hopefully you will get some soon too!

      It feels good to be back at work.

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  7. I love the dill pickle relish from the ball blue book and make it every year. My cucumbers are ramping up production so I will be ready to do a batch soon. My husband does not like pickles that are sweet so I tend not to make them because I would be the only one eating them, but sometimes I really do crave them. Maybe a half batch might be in order?

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    1. I think a half of batch would be perfect. I always crave sweet pickles when I have a toasted cheese sandwich!

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  8. So pretty. I still need to make relish. I think I picked enough cukes today to make it. My cucumbers are rapidly dying due to wilt, so it is probably the last of the cucumber preserving this year. So sad too. I usually love August and all the cucumber salads. Not this year though. At least I got enough early on to make pickles for the year.

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    1. I'm not a big cucumber fan. When the pickles and relish are done. I just leave a plant or two for "The Italian". He loves cucs!

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  9. It was a relish making week for me, too. Mine was sweet zucchini relish, which we like just as well as the cucumber relish. Helped with the glut of zucchini!

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    1. Granny, I still need to make another batch of that relish for "The Italian". He just loves his relish! I made zucchini relish years ago. If I have too many, I just may give it a try again.

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  10. Pickles are on our list to try this year. The in-laws make them all the time but we usually don't have enough cucumbers to make pickles. But this year I planted extra so we could give them a try!!

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    1. Good luck with you pickles this year. There are some great recipes out there!

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  11. Thanks for the heads up about the Ball's book having a recipe for sweet pickle relish. I canned some last year from another book but it wasn't a sweet relish. Although I really liked the one I did, I'm a sucker for sweet relish! I'll have to try that recipe!!

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    1. Holly, I have tried several different sweet relish recipes. We like this one the best. Give it a try. I'm sure you will like it.

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  12. Your pickles and relish look lovely. I know exactly what you're saying about the tomato glut coming soon. Can't wait!

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    1. The tomato glut is way behind this year. Last year at this time I was harvesting between 60-90 lbs a week!

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  13. Robin,

    I would be behind you opening up the jars and eatting directly from them. Bread and butter pickles are my favorite. I could eat a jar for a meal and be content :-)

    Tomatoes seem to be taking forever to rippen. They need to hurry up, I know you're trying to get them canned before starting your new job. I have the same problem with the tomatoes. Some rippen but not enough to can. So I've been washing them and freezing them in a large baggie patiently waiting for an entire harvest, or enough to make several cans of sauce.

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    1. Sandy, I already started my new job. The excessive heat and lack of rain we had last month really put the tomatoes behind in ripening.

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  14. I actually was going to make the same bread and butter recipe and thought it was a lot of onions. About how much onion did you use instead?

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    1. Vanessa, I use half or less then half of the recommended amount of onions when I make them. I think the recipe is really over kill on the onions. Just slice and layer as much as you think you need. They will be great!

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  15. Your pickles and relish look delicious. I've never made relish before.. have to add that to the "to make" list. However, right now I'm in that tomato glut you're talking about.

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    1. Julie, Hopefully I will get these time consuming canning things done before my tomato glut comes in! Lucky you!!!

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  16. Wonderful looking canning! We don't eat much relish but may be tempted to try dill pickle relish! Nancy

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    1. Thanks Nancy, If you don't eat much relish, just make a half batch.

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  17. Linking it for the first time! And I just started blogging, but I have been lurking around for quite some time. Your blog has been such an inspiration and I've been learning a lot! Great looking pickles! I wish my cucumber plants were doing better...

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    1. Thanks for lurking and joining in! You will love the great world of blogging! There's so many wonderful people out there!

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  18. I'm really impressed Robin! You started a new full-time job this week and still found time to can some really great food! Nice work.

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    1. Jody, I did that canning last weekend. There will be more preserving this weekend for sure!

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  19. My favourite preserve is bread and butter pickles, I still have a jar or two left but I'm getting worried it wont get me through until cucumber season starts here. i have sown some seed ultra early to try and remedy matters - we'll see if that works.

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    1. I hope you make it through until your cucs start coming in! I guess you will have to use a little restraint in eating what you have left :)

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  20. I have a good cucumber crop this year and giving away most of my cukes, may be I should looking into making some pickles.

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  21. my tongue is ready to taste it when seeing. I do not take lunch without pickle. Mango pickle is one of my favorite. Keep it up.

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