Pickling Party

Today my friend Lena taught my friend Leanne and me how to pickle! We all love sewing, crafting, and cooking, so they were the perfect pickling partners (alliteration, much?)! Today we made dilly beans, garlic and dill asparagus, spicy carrots, pickled red onions, and some refigerator bread and butter pickles, onions, and jalapeños. Yum...my mouth is watering just thinking about it all. When the fruits of our labor are ready (in about 6 weeks!) we're going to have a Bloody Mary party to celebrate our hard work. I just ordered my very own canning supplies, so I can't wait to do it again soon. XO

Basic Instructions:

-Completely sterilize jars and lids. We washed the jars in the dishwasher and boiled the lids in water to ensure that they were especially clean.
-Find a recipe that you like. This book has great recipes and nice pictures.
-Prepare jars by adding ingredients (garlic, dill, peppers, etc.) and then tightly packing the pickling vegetables in an upright manner. Try to squeeze as many as possible.
-Fill the jars with the warm liquid or brine that you prepared. You should leave around a 1/2 inch at the top of the jar.
-Put on the seal and lid and don't tighten it all the way.
-Put the jars into a canner. We used a steam canner which I think is a bit easier to use than a pressure canner (especially for acidic foods, like pickles!).
-Wait for the steam to start coming out of the sides of the canner before you start the timer. Leave them in for the amount of time that the recipe indicates (typically 5-10 minutes).
-Take the jars out carefully and wait for the seals to pop down. You should be able to tell once they're completely sealed. Once they are, tighten the lid completely.
-Leave for 6-8 weeks and then enjoy your pickled goodies!
{Photos from Instagram}.