How to Make Dill Pickles and Preserving the Summer’s Bounty
Happy Labor Day weekend! I cannot believe that summer is almost over. Really? Where did it go?
We spent so much time On the Road this summer that it literally disappeared before I even knew what happened. Oh, well…I will embrace fall wholeheartedly and get back into the kitchen to do some serious cooking…if we can ever stay home long enough to find the time to do it! I make myself exhausted just thinking about the trips that we still have planned. 🙂
Our holiday weekend has been designated to finish our remaining canning, preserving and freezing for the summer. Many of our summer’s favorite fruits and vegetables will soon be gone and the apples and pumpkins will be replacing them, so it’s now or never!
I put Mr. Bunkycooks to work on the corn schucking job!
Canning foods and preserving them properly is time consuming, however, there is nothing more rewarding than going to the basement in the dead of winter and opening up a can of your own green beans or jar of tomatoes. You know right where they came from and how they were prepared. Besides, they are better than anything that you can purchase in the store. Trust me, you will be spoiled once you start putting up your own foods.
I will have a few posts coming over the next week or two (while we are on the move again) with some canning recipes for a few of our favorites. There is still time to gather up the last of the summer’s best produce and get to preserving your own food, so why don’t you give it a try!
One of the easiest ways to start is with a simple freezer jam recipe. I get more questions from readers about making jam, so I assume that more and more people are making their own jams and jellies these days. These freezer jam recipes are simple, quick and do not require a canner. The recipe I use for Spicy Fig Orange Jam is also incredibly easy and can be made without traditional canning methods.
We also like to remove corn from the cob and freeze it in freezer safe containers. Be sure not to waste the corn pulp and the cobs. You can add the pulp to all sorts of dishes…even ice cream! We make corn stock from the cobs to use in corn soup.
Mr. B also cut the corn off the cobs and scraped the pulp.
A mountain of corn!
What a great post Gwen, loaded with information and beautiful photographs. My mom and grand mom always canned in the summer. This brings back great memories.Wish I had the means and the time to can…. {sigh}
Hi Kathy,
I think it’s more about the time and patience than the means. You will end up saving money in the end once you get all the jars and canning equipment. The only thing you need to replace are the lids for the most part. I hope you give it a try sometime. 🙂
Gwen
Wow your homemade pickles look great. I love a good dill pickle!
I guess you can only do these projects if you have adequate freezer and basement space. Come live in Coronado, and you’ll have problems. Glad to see you two spending the weekend up in the mountains, staying out of trouble. Can’t wait to see my autographed photo of Besh in the buff…I mean in his southern suit 😉
LOL! No, unfortunately, I didn’t get that shot, but you will like what I did send you! Have a great weekend and don’t have too much fun on the patio tonight! 😉
Love how you captured your canning weekend. Every thing looks delicious. Send me some pickles!!:)They look really good!Have a fun and relaxing weekend with Mr. Bunkycooks. xx
Hey Lora,
Yes, that is only a small portion of the canning weekend. We are still at it at 7 pm and will be going strong tonight and tomorrow! We are crazy like that. 😉 Maybe you can come to Atlanta so that you can try some of the pickles!
Gwen
Okay, I was up till 10pm finishing the beans and cleaning the kitchen and 7am this morning I was cutting more beans (a different type), then helping with peaches. In the meantime I prepped the dinner and finished the main course. Just Sayin.
Mr. .,
Yes, you are the bean master! We now have 45 jars of beans put up…almost one jar per week for a year. I know you wanted to get the peaches moving along because you couldn’t wait to get the peaches in the jars with the brandy! 🙂 I’m just calling it as I see it!
Mrs. B
Thanks so much for posting and inspiring me to get to canning! I just posted about a community canning class I took a couple of weekends ago that made me less frightened of the whole process. It is a lot work, but you’re right — it’s so worth it. (I’m in Atlanta too, btw, and really enjoy your blog!)
Hi Rachel,
That was exciting to see the canning class. I did check it out on your blog. I learned about canning by doing it, however, a class would be really helpful, especially for people who are terrified by the process. The pressure canner can be particularly intimidating. Good luck with your canning this year!
Gwen
I definitely need to get into canning next summer! Thanks for sharing the gorgeous pictures Gwen!
that is just great that you have put up so much stuff, the reward later in the winter will be worth it 10 times over, but you know that… great looking pickles
Hi Drick,
Yes, it’s always worth it months from now. The hard part is forcing yourself to keep on going when there’s still so much to do!
Gwen
Wow great post!! I grew my very first vegetable garden this year and am in love with it!! I’m looking into “canning” but really freezing. I was wondering if that book you mentioned talked about freezing as well as canning. Also with the corn – did you just throw it in the freezer like that? Thanks!
Hi Tanya,
Yes, the Ball book talks about freezing as well as canning and gives directions for freezing both fruits and vegetables. Some fruits and veggies can be frozen as is, like berries and corn. We literally put the fresh cut con into freezer safe containers (you can also use freezer zip lock bags) and freeze them for later use as a side dish or in soup. I try to use them within 6 months. We also freeze the corn and the pulp for use in stocks and soups. We try not to waste anything. Good luck!
Gwen
I like these collections of pickle making. Those are truly a great knowledge for me.
OMG You really do a lot of canning! GREG
Wow! What a lovely and informative post. I enjoyed the pictures and hearing about all the different fruits/veggies that you preserve. Thanks for sharing this pickle recipe too! I adore dill pickles, and I would love to make my own. I hope you are having a nice day. I’m enjoying my Labor Day with baking and friends. Much love from Austin!
Wow, you were busy over the holiday weekend. I know you will be glad you did all this when you pop open the first jar in the winter months. Your pickles look great and so do the rest of your jars.
If you want your pickles to stay crisp, you must use them the same day they are picked, TRIM OFF THE BLOSSOM END, use pickle crisp (optional) or a grape leaf in the jar. There is an alternative method of processing these days, Low Temperature Pasteurization (see link), which keeps them crisp. It takes a full half hour, but the temperature does not go above 180-185 F, so the pickles aren’t cooked as much. https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_06/low_temp_pasteur.html