Garden Bounty: Easy Refrigerator Pickles

Our garden this year has produced more cucumbers than we could possibly eat...and all at once. I don't know if it has anything to do with the large amount of rain we have had this spring or the cooler temperatures we have had up until recently that caused this surplus of cucumbers. Needless to say, I was not about to let them go to waste. In a day or two, all the ones I used for the following recipe will be replaced when I pick the new batch that will be ready for picking......

Today, I made refrigerator pickles. With a little slicing, mixing and pouring, I was able to make 10 quarts of pickles. Below, is a short tutorial and believe me when I say it was easy-peasy.

You will need these guys: fresh cucumbers, onion, minced garlic, mustard seeds, ground Turmeric, Celery seed, sugar, vinegar, sea salt, crushed red pepper optional.

I boiled my clean jars and lids to sterilize them, set aside.

Next, thinly slice cucumbers and onions.

Pack jars with cucumbers and onion in a layering pattern, alternating veggies. Add your minced garlic to each jar. If you would like to add crushed red pepper flakes, add to jars now.

Look how pretty these guys look. Just waiting for the good stuff to be poured in.

You can use less onion if you are not a fan of the onions. I would however, not omit them all together. They add a wonderful flavor to the pickles.

In a large pan, mix vinegar, sugar, salt and spices and bring to a boil. Make sure all the sugars dissolve well. Turn off stove and let sit a few minutes.

Pour hot mixture into jars. I do not fill them all the way up, a little over 3/4 full is good. You can turn upside down in the refrigerator if need be.

Look how pretty these look. I put about a teaspoon of red pepper flakes in a few of the jars. The one above shows ones with the pepper. It does not make them too hot, just kicked up a bit. Good. Trust me. Steve likes his kicked up a bit...makes him feel special.

Wipe off all lids, and jars with a damp towel. They are now ready to transfer to the refrigerator.

Place jars in refrigerator. You can eat these as quickly as 24 hours after they sit up in the refrigerator, but I like to wait about a week. Store in refrigerator for up to six months. But,I am here to tell you this...... I promise you, they won't last that long.

I made 10 quarts of pickles and made six batches of the syrup to accommodate the amount of cucumbers I had. You can make as little or as large a batch of pickles you would like, just adjust the recipe accordingly. This recipe was adapted from a vintage refrigerator pickle recipe I found in a vintage cookbook.

Easy Refrigerator Pickles:

6 cups thinly sliced cucumbers

2 cups thinly sliced onions

1 1/2 cups sugar,

1 1/2 cups vinegar

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp mustard seed

1/2 tsp celery seed

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

3/4 tsp. of minced garlic

crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

2 quart sized jars

In a glass quart jar alternate layers of sliced cucumbers and onions. Add minced garlic to each jar, if using crushed red pepper, add also. In a medium saucepan combine sugar, vinegar, salt, mustard seed, celery seed and ground turmeric. Bring to a boil, stirring just till sugar is dissolved. Pour vinegar mixture on top of cucumbers/onion mixture, cool slightly. Cover tightly shaking jar to incorporate the mixture, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before serving. Store up to 6 months in refrigerator.

If your garden has taken off this year, with lots of veggies to harvest, why not make a couple of batches of these easy pickles. Keep them for yourself, or give some away....I am sure you would have not trouble finding takers on homemade fresh, crisp, yummy pickles straight from your kitchen. I know it is not difficult around here to find a taker or two, they will be lined up at my door as soon as they read pickles were made.....trust me!! What do you think? Care to give it a try??