# Got a cosmic bread and butter pickle recipe?



## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

My mother's bread and butter pickles were pretty insipid and no one I know is attached to a recipe. The best sounding one so far I found in the Farm Journal's Freezing & Canning Book, uses ginger & turmeric beside celery & mustard seeds, comes from Oregon.

I want to use cucumbers & red onions, & thought to toss in some red chilies I froze last summer, & dill seed.

Anyone channelling passed pickle meisters? :monkey:


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## Randy Rooster (Dec 14, 2004)

Im also looking for an usual cucumber pickle recipe - I have a bumper crop of cukes and my mother already made her b and b pickles but Id like something a little different.


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Hey girl! I saw your visitor message about the pickles, but I'm afraid I can't help this time. I've never been much of a pickle eater. About the only ones I like are the kosher garlic dills like Claussen and sweet pickle relish for my tuna salad, lol. 

I could just kick myself because my grandma was a blue ribbon fair winner for over 50 years for her pickle recipes. I never bothered to get them because I didn't like pickles...never even dawned on me that I should save them for posterity or other pickle afficianados! :bash: I was young and dumb, lol. So sorry!

Thanks for the compliment about the cornbread, just glad I could help! 

P.S. I usually love all Farm Journal recipes, so maybe you could experiment a little with theirs, adding your extra touches? Good luck!


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Thanks Callie, I can go forward without regret anyway! So many good cooks in the past never had written recipes. My great aunt was famous for her brandied peaches (she always included a pit in each jar), I just have to imagine what she would do. I do like the Farm Journal recipies, learned to make bread from their Bread Book, and the Candy Book can't be beat.
Mr. Rooster, here's one that stood out in my vintage cookbook collection, it's from Meta Given (1942):

THUNDER AND LIGHTENING PICKLES
(Senf Gurken)
6 1/2 lbs. yellow cucumbers, 4 to 5 large
3 pints water
2/3 cup pure granulated salt
2 to 4 sprigs fresh green dill blossoms
1 tablespoon fresh grated horseradish
2 pods red hot pepper, medium size
2 1/2 cups cider vinegar
2/3 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
Wash and pare cucumbers thinly. Cut in half lengthwise and scrape out seedy portion. Cut halves in thirds lengthwise, then cut in half crosswise. Put into glass or enamelware bowl and cover with brine made with the 3 pints water and the salt. Cover and let stand overnight. Drain well. Divide the next 3 ingredients between 2 sterlized quart jars. Heat rest of ingredients to boiling, add cucumbers and simmer 5 minutes. Pack pickles into jars up to 1-inch of top. Seal with glass or enamel-lined lids.


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

My grandmother never wrote hers down either, except for the ones I specifically asked her to. She had a few from her mother too that I got copies of, but I lost all them all in a house fire, I cried for days, lol.

Most of the ones I got I either wrote from memory or would write them down step by step as she made them, guessing at measurements and then testing later. She never measured anything, and I don't often either as I'm pretty good at gauging a cup or teaspoon of something. But I do try to make sure, or as close as possible, before giving out recipes to others.

I love Meta Givens too, she was a mainstay back the forties and fifties. Those would probably be some good pickles. I have a huge vintage cookbook collection too! Well, good luck...if you think about it, let me know how yours came out and what variation you used!


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## Randy Rooster (Dec 14, 2004)

Thanks Cowgirl- I may give that one a try - does it give a processing time?


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Nope, that's it - she doesn't cover pickles in her processing charts for fruits and vegetables. In her intro to Pickles and Relishes she says "Pickling requires no special equipment other than a good-sized preserving kettle." She was a home economist from the University of Chicago - this is from The Modern Family Cook Book.

Maybe Lucy can advise?


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## cc (Jun 4, 2006)

Well, this is kind of cheating but the ball mix that you can buy where you get your pectin or other canning supplies is really very good. I have made regular B&B pickles with it and also used it to make jalapeno B&B pickles, I know that sounds strange but they ROCK! :rock:


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## RedDirt Cowgirl (Sep 21, 2010)

Bought spices yesterday and just for good measure picked up some McCormick's Pickling Spice - revelation! It's all whole stuff, including the ginger - here I was going to use powdered ginger, I think fresh would be better tasting and not cloud the brine. Another ingredient I wasn't expecting was cardamom - of course! :happy: Whole mace, which has been my quest for eons, those old recipes that call for "a blade of mace" are just too intriguing.


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