RFCJ RECIPE ARCHIVE
Posted by : Elaine Radis Pickles, Garlic, Sara Kasdan's - pareve
Yield: 10 quarts 1/2 Bushel small FIRM cukes 1/2 bn Dill 1 lb Salt; (not a typo, Kosher is -best) 5 Garlic pods; the WHOLE thing -not 5 cloves 1/2 lb Mixed pickling spices 3 ga -water; to cover 1. Wash cukes very carefully and check them over. You don't want ANY dirt or sediment; it can spoil the whole batch. And you want the cukes FIRM. 2. Put in a large stone ware crock (I still use my Bubbe's). Break up the dill and put around the cukes. You can use more or less dill. 3. Make a brine of the water, salt, garlic and spices. (Sara Chasten of LOVE AND KNISHES fame suggests adding a fresh egg to the brine IN the shell, and when it rises to the surface, you have added enough salt,! It works). 4. Add the brine to the crock; the cukes must be ENTIRELY covered with the liquid. Cover them with an inverted dish weighted down with a clean, heavy stone. 5. Let stand at room temperature until done to your liking. The length of time will depend on the temperature. We used to put the crock on the back porch, but it was always the end of summer or the beginning of all. Well done pickles (not the half sours that are popular now) will take a week or two. After the pickles taste the way YOU want them too, refrigerate to stop the pickling process. NOTE: You can always use more or less garlic, or any of the other spices. make them to YOUR taste. This is a recipe that I took from Sara Kasdan's book, LOVE AND KNISHES.... Auntie_e/in Framingham
