| 14 DAY SWEET PICKLES Wash and slice lengthwise 2 gallons of 4-5 inch cucumbers. Pack them into a clean 3 gallon stone or glass jar. Do not use metal or plastic. Dissolve 2 cups non-iodized pickling salt in one gallon of boiling water and pour while hot over pickles. Do not use iodized salt as it will darken your pickles. Cover cucumbers with a glass plate to weigh them down so cucumbers are completely submerged in the salt water. Let them stand for 1 week. On the 8th day, drain the liquid off and then pour 1 gallon boiling water over them and let the pickles stand 24 hours. On the 9th day, drain the liquid off and pour 1 gallon boiling water mixed with 1 tablespoon powdered alum over the pickles and let stand for another 24 hours. Then drain. For the pickling mixture, combine 5 pints white vinegar boiling hot with 6 cups sugar, 1\2 oz. celery seed, 1 oz. cinnamon stick. Pour this mixture over the pickles. Drain pickling mixture off for three mornings, reheating it each morning and each time adding one more cup of sugar before pouring it back over pickles. With the third and last heating, pack pickles into sterilized pint or quart jars. Pour hot pickling mixture over them to within 1/2 inch of the top of the jar and tighten the lid and ring. Place jars in a large heavy kettle specifically designed for canning and cover in hot water to within 1/2 inch from the top of the jar. Bring kettle water to a boil and continue boiling for five minutes to complete seal. Remove jars from the water and set in an area free of drafts to cool. Test seal and if it is tight and doesn't pop when pressed down your pickles are ready to store. (This recipe was collected from an elderly neighbor.) |
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