How to turn home grown cucumbers into pickles

It all started with 32 seeds. I thought that it would give us enough cucumbers to make the occasional salad and the quick snack. Little did I realize that the cucumbers would go crazy. So after coming home from camp I decided it was time to make pickles. It was my first time and I had a lot of fun.  Here is the recipe I used. 

Homemade Pickles 

4 C vinegar

4 C water

1/3 C salt

2/3 C sugar

7 Lbs. cucumbers

3 Tbs. pickle seasoning

7 Fresh dill heads (one per jar) or dill weed( 1/2 tsp. per jar) 

7 cloves of garlic

Heat water,vinegar, salt, sugar, and pickle spice(in a spice bag or tea steeper, Don't put it directly in the liquid as seasoning). Bring to boil and turn to a simmer for 15 min. Prepare 7 pint jars or 3 quart jars for canning. once jars are ready add 1 clove garlic crushed and 1 head of dill to each jar (for quarts put 2). Pack in the cucumbers in the jar tight leaving 1 inch head room then ladle hot liquid over them till it reaches the 1 inch lip. Wipe rim and put on seal and ring. Process in a bubble bath caner for 15 minutes. Water must be boiling before you start timing the jars for the 15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely before moving them again. Overnight is best, check to be sure the seal has worked. If you encounter a jar not sealed throw it in the refrigerator. It is best to let the pickles cure for 2-4 weeks before eating them.  

You can slice the cucumbers into spears or chips, I have done both. 1/4 inch slices work best.
For more crispy cucumbers try soaking them in ice water for 1 hour before cutting them.
Also try adding banana peppers for a spice kick.  Other veggies pickle well too. I used carrots and they taste delicious. Having an extra hand is helpful. 

Thought for the day...

One day, a poor boy who was begging from door to door to feed his hungry stomach decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door. Instead of a meal,he asked for a drink of water. The woman thought he looked hungry, so she brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, "how much do I owe you?". "you don't owe me anything",she replied. "Mother has taught us never to accept pay for kindness"."he said... Then I thank you from my heart". Years later, that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors are baffled because they couldn't cure her. They finally sent her to the big city, where they call specialists to study her rare illness. Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town where she came from, a strange light filled his eyes. Immediately,he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room. He recognized her at once. he went back 2 d consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day, he gave special attention to that case. After long struggle, the battle was won!!! Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the bill. It was sent to her room. The woman feared opening it, for she was sure it will take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally she looked, and noticed something was written at the edge of the note. "paid for in full for a glass of milk". Tears filled her eyes as she immediately remembered... Every form of kindness you sow doesn't bounce,it reproduces itself.

Sprouting

This is the Alfalfa sprouts. They are 3 and 1/2 days old I will let them grow for another day till the end of tomorrow  then they will be ready to eat. 

Today I started Red Clover seeds! I am excited to taste them. 

This is also the Alfalfa sprouts. they will be ready in 1 day! I like them nice and green .  Don't mind the blue in the background it is just the compost cans. 

These are Red Beet seeds. Was reading up about planting them and it said to soak them in water for 24 hours to help start germination so we will see how it goes!  

New Ideas

The newest thing I have tried is Sprouting! Right now I have rice, sesame, and Lentils sprouting. I want to learn  a lot more and eventually teach others. I will post photos soon. Also I want to look for new recipes for Sprouted seeds. Planning on getting some Alfalfa seeds to sprout too. Hope all is well and I will try to post the photos soon.

Cornflake Sunflower Burgers

4 cups sunflower seeds blended

2 large onions

5 cups water

¼ cup braggs (soy sauce)

3 teaspoons salt

3 teaspoons Italian seasoning

16 cups of Corn Flakes

3 cups chopped walnuts (I prefer pecans)

Combine ingredients except liquid. Pour liquid over dry ingredients. Mix well till all the corn flakes are moist, but be sure to not crush the corn flakes. Let sit for 1o minutes. Form into patties and place on cookie sheet. Bake in oven for 40 minutes at 325 degrees. Burgers should be nice and brown.

* NOTE… I like to have a lot of texture in my burgers so I personally do as little stirring as possible! I like the corn flakes to be whole in the burgers; it gives it a more meaty texture. Also you can leave ½ cup or so of the sunflower seeds whole for a variation. Hope you enjoy. This is my mom’s recipe.

Sprouting seeds

Sprouting seeds is one of the best nutrient rich food you can eat. The time it takes is short and it is well worth it. You can get a lb. of greens for less than 75CENTS. I am starting to sprout and will let you know how it goes.

Dehydration Adventures.....

This is some of the many things you can dehydrate including: Pineapple, bananas, kiwi, celery, carrots, oranges, apples, and cranberries. I have tried a lot of things, but Apples were my favorite. It only took like 15 hours for all the stuff to dry! I enjoy dehydrating it is a lot of fun!