Dill Pickle Green Beans

This is a favorite food of mine to eat with sandwiches. They seem a bit crazy but they are very good!

I have two recipes in my recipe file drawer. One is from 1992 and the other is from 1994. I remember Mom and I having a taste test but, sadly, I neglected to write on the recipe cards which one was our favorite. So, I am including both recipes and you will have to have your own taste test!

Dill Pickle Beans #1 (from 1992)

2 lbs. green beans

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

4 cloves of garlic

4 large heads of dill

2 cups water

1/4 cup salt

1 pint white vinegar

Clean the beans and place in 4 pint jars. In each pint, add 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes, 1 clove of garlic and 1 head of dill. In a saucepan, heat water, salt and vinegar. Bring to a boil. Pour over beans. Put on lids and process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.

Makes 4 pints.

Dill Pickle Beans #2 (from 1994)

(I really think that this was our favorite but I'm not totally sure. 

You will just need to test both of them!)

4-5 lbs. green beans

8-16 heads of dill

8 cloves of garlic

4 cups white vinegar

4 cups water

1/2 cup Kerr Pickling Salt

1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

Pack jars with washed  and clean green beans, dill and garlic. In a saucepan, combine vinegar, water, pickling salt and pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and pour into each jar, leaving 1/2" head room. Put on lids and rings. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. 

Makes 8 pints.

Recipes shared by Robin per request of Sheila Brinkerhoff.

Mustard Pickles

This recipe is from Grandma, Elpha Berla Hougland Blossom. These are delicious with a ham sandwich or with roast or meat loaf. Alison used to eat them straight out of the jar!

(The picture is from Cookies or Biscuits?)

Mustard Pickles

Vegetables:
1 quart large cucumbers, cubed
1 quart small cucumbers
1 quart small silver, skinned onions
1 quart chipped green tomatoes
2 red peppers, chopped
1 large cauliflower, broken into small pieces

Brine:
1 quart water
1/2 cup salt

Sauce:
6 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 tablespoon tumeric
1 cup flour
2 cups sugar
2 quarts white vinegar

Wash all vegetables, place in a large pot and cover with brine. Let stand 24 hours. Bring to a vegetables and brine to a boil. Drain throughly. Mix sauce ingredients together in a saucepan and cook until thick. Stir into vegetables. Heat thoroughly. Bottle and process in a hot water bath for 20 minutes.

Recipe shared by Robin (at the request of Grandma, Sheila Sarah Blossom Brinkerhoff)

Beet Relish

This is an old family favorite, Beet Relish! It is from the Farm Journal Freezing and Canning Cook Book from 1963. It is delicious with meatloaf and roasts.

Picture from culinaryginger.com

Beet Relish

3 cups drained, finely chopped or ground cooked beets
1 cup vinegar
6 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon allspice
2 pouches of liquid fruit pectin

Measure beets into a very large saucepan.  Add vinegar, sugar, horseradish and spices, mixing well. Bring mixture to a full boil over high heat and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from the heat and stir in the liquid pectin all at once. Skim the foam off of the top.  Ladle mixture into hot jars. Screw on the lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.  Remove jars from the canner.

Makes 8 half pints.

Recipe shared by Robin, per Sheila and Karen's request.

Watermelon Rind Pickles

This is my Grandmother's (Elpha Hougland Blossom) recipe. I remember having it on the table for holidays and family gatherings. And, it always was in a beautiful glass dish!

Watermelon Rind Pickles

7 lbs. watermelon rinds
7 cups sugar
2 cups vinegar
1/2 tsp. oil of cloves
1/2 tsp. oil of cinnamon

Trim off the dark green and pink parts of the watermelon rinds. Cut into 1" cubes or cut with a small cutter. Soak in brine water (1/4 cup salt to 1 quart water). Drain, rinse and cover with cold water. Cook until tender but not soft; drain. Combine sugar, vinegar, oil of cloves, oil of cinnamon and bring to a boil. Pour over rind. Let stand overnight. In the morning, drain off the syrup, reheat it and pour back over the rind. Repeat. The third morning, heat, bringing the syrup to a boil. Seal in hot, sterilized jars. The oils keep the rind clear and transparent. Makes 8 pints.

Recipe shared by Grandma Blossom, of course!

Apricot Pineapple Conserve

This is a delicous jam recipe from Flora Belle Riley (also known as, Grandma Johnson), my Grandmother.

Apricot Pineapple Conserve

8 cups coarsely cut apricots
7 cups sugar
20 oz. can of crushed pineapple

10-12 blanched almond slivers

1 small jar of maraschino cherries, chopped

Wash, pit and coarsely cut the apricots. Combine the apricots, the sugar and pineapple in a large kettle. Cook over medium heat until thick, about 30 minutes. Add almonds and chopped cherries, about 5 minutes before completion of the cooking time. Makes 6 pints of conserve.

Recipe share by Sheila Brinkerhoff

Chunk Sweet Pickles

This recipe is from Elpha Hougland Blossom.

Picture from nostolgicdreamsbedandbreakfast.blogspot.com

CHUNK SWEET PICKLES

Cover 1 gallon cucumbers with boiling water.  Let stand overnight and repeat for 4 days using the same water each time.  Just drain, boil the water again and pour over the cucumbers again. On the 5^th day, cut into chunks, 1 inch long and pour boiling syrup (recipes below) over the cucumbers each day, for 4 days, re-using the syrup.  Just drain, boil the syrup and pour over the cucumbers again. When ready to place in jars, add 1 tsp turmeric and 1 box pickling spice. Stir, put in jars and seal while hot.

Syrup:

1 quart vinegar                                            

4 pounds sugar

3 Tbsp salt

Alum the size of a pea (What do you think? Maybe 1/2 teaspoon?)

Recipe shared by Sheila.

Apricot And Pineapple Marmalade

This recipe is from Elpha Hougland Blossom.

APRICOT AND PINEAPPLE MARMALADE

Wash 1 pound dried apricots.  Soak them for 12 hours in water to cover by 1 inch.  Bring them slowly to boiling point.  Strain them, reserving the juice.  Put them through the ricer.  Add juice and contents of 1  #2 can of crushed pineapple (2 ½ cups).  For every cup of pulp and juice, add 3/4 cup sugar.  Add 3 Tbsp lemon juice.  Boil the marmalade for 15 minutes or until it thickens, stirring frequently.

Recipe shared by Sheila.

Pickled Beets

This recipe is from Elpha Hougland Blossom.

PICKLED BEETS

1 quart vinegar                                                        

3 cups white or brown sugar

1 Tbsp broken stick cinnamon 

1 Tbsp mustard seed

1 Tbsp whole cloves                                               

1 Tbsp allspice

½ tsp salt

Let come to a boil.  Add small or sliced beets.  Let simmer for 5 minutes.  Put 1 clove garlic—sliced into sterilized jars.  Pack in beets.  Pour hot syrup over them.  Seal.  Process 5 minutes in a hot water bath.

Recipe shared by Sheila.

Dill Green Tomatoes

These recipe is from Elpha Hougland Blossom.

DILL GREEN TOMATOES

Select small firm green tomatoes and pack into jars, add 1 clove of garlic, 1 stalk of celery, green pepper and dill.  Boil 2 quarts of water, 1 quart vinegar, 1 cup salt.  Boil hard for 5 minutes and pour hot brine over vegetables and seal.  Ready to use in 4 weeks.

Recipe shared by Sheila.

Heavenly Jam

This is one of our favorite jams- Strawberry Rhubarb!

This recipe is are from Elpha Hougland Blossom.

Picture from mountainmamacooks.com

HEAVENLY JAM

5 cups rhubarb cut fine

5 cups sugar

1-20oz can crushed pineapple

Juice of 1 lemon 

2 pkgs strawberry jello

Boil above ingredients—except jello—for 20 minutes.  Remove from heat and add jello powder.  Stir until the jello is dissolved.  Pour into glasses and seal.  Process in a water bath for 10  minutes.   MAKES 4 PINTS.

Zucchini Lime Pickles

Recipes from Elna Creek and Elodie Caldwell

Zucchini Lime Pickles

7 lbs zucchini diced

2 c pickling lime

1 T salt

4 lbs sugar (8 cups)

1 ½ quarts of vinegar

1 small box pickling spice

Soak zucchini overnight in 2 gallons of water and 2 cups of lime.  Wash and cover with water.  Let soak in green food coloring, ½ tsp, change the water every 45 minutes for 3 times.  Mix ingredients and pour over pickles.  Let stand overnight.  Cook for 25 minutes.  Next morning pack and process 5 minutes in boiling water bath.

Recipe shared by Karen.

Zucchini Relish

We got this recipe from Elna Creek.

Zucchini Relish

Makes 9-10 pints

10 cups ground zucchini

4 cups ground onion

5 T salt

Let stand in refrigerator overnight.

Rinse well in cold water.  Drain and add:

1 green pepper ground

2 red pepper ground

2 ½ cup vinegar

4 cups sugar

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp dry mustard

1 ½ t turmeric

2 T cornstarch

2 T celery seed

2 t black pepper

Cook on low for 30 minutes.  Seal in jars.  Makes 9-10 pints

Recipe shared by Karen.