Homemade Dill Pickles

Now, those of you who know me well, know that I don't really have a lover affair with pickles. However, my husband and sisters LOVE them, so I decided to give them a try. Making your own pickles is super easy and cost effective. There is an amazing produce stand near my house, which sells local pickling cucumbers for $0.99 a pound, so about 3 pounds produces about 5 pint jars of pickles.

I got this recipe out of "Canning for a New Generation," by Liana Krissoff.



Ingredients:

3 pounds pickling cucumbers
2 cups cider vinegar (5% acidity)
2 tablespoons pure kosher salt
Ball pickling spice
Fresh Dill
4-5 cloves of garlic
Red chili flakes (optional)

1. Wash the jars and keep them hot in the canning bath and put the lids in a small bowl.

2. Cut off the ends of each cucumber and cut into spears.

3. In a small pot, combine the vinegar, 2 cups of water and kosher salt. Bring to a full boil.

4. Ladle boiling water from the canning pot into the bowl with the lids. Using a jar lifter, remove the hot jars from the canning pot, carefully pouring out the water back into the pot. Place the hot jars onto a towel. Drain the water off the jar lids.

5. Working quickly, place about a teaspoon or so, of pickling spice, a dill spring, whole garlic clove and  1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (if you want them spicy) into each jar. Then pack the cucumbers tightly into each jar. Trim off the tops of the cucumbers if you need too. You want them to be submerged with the brine.

6. Next pour the hot brine into each jar and leave 1/2 inch of headspace from the top. Gently tap the jars on the counter to remove any air bubbles. Remove any of the air bubbles with a chopstick. Clean the rims with a clean paper towel. Place a lid on each jar and a ring and tighten to just finger tight. Place the jars in a canning rack and place in the boiling water. Make sure there is at least an inch or two of water over the jars and process for 10 minutes. Then remove from the canning bath and place on a clean folded towel and do not disturb for 12 hours. After an hour, check to see if the lids have sealed by pressing down on the center of each lid. If it hasn't sealed, then refrigerate immediately. Label the jars and store. Most canned goods stay good for up to a year.

Wash the pickles

Cut in half

Cut in half again

Looking good!

Place the vinegar, water and salt in a pot and bring to a boil.

Place the garlic, pickling season and dill in the bottom of each jar.

Tightly pack each jar with the cut cucumbers.

We did a double batch in a quart jar.

Fill with the brine and place lids and rings on each jar.

Process in the water bath for 10 minutes.

Place on a towel and let rest for 12 hours. Enjoy with a nice deli sandwich!

Canning, Canning and More Canning

Molly picking berries!

So these past two weekends have been full of strawberry picking and canning. Strawberry season came a little early this year in Washington, so we've been taking full advantage of it! There is a u-pick place in Arlington, WA, at Biringer Farms. Super fun place and family friendly. It's only $2.25 a pound, which is a great price considering these strawberries are about $10 for half a flat at the local grocery store. These strawberries are super sweet and ripe, so you have to eat them or can them within 24-48 hours after picking.

My sister and canning-partner-in-crime and I have been cleaning out all of our local Goodwills for canning jars. We love thrift store shopping and buying items that are unique and fun. Its also a smaller footprint on the environment to buy used and cheaper! Only $0.20 a jar and it doesn't matter what size. We plan on doing a lot of pickling, so we're going to need loads of large jars.

 Also, my husband and I have been super busy in the garden and so far we've planted a bing cherry, rainier cherry, puget apricot, fuji apple, and gala apple trees! We're super excited to have a bunch of fun fruit trees and we've also planted a few blueberry bushes. Next year we should have a ton of fresh fruit!

We've canned loads of strawberry jam, strawberry lavender jam and strawberry orange compote. Over 50 jars! We can't wait to can more jams and jellies.

Whole Wheat and Cream Biscuits

While I've been getting ready for canning this weekend, I've started perfecting my biscuit recipe. I like these biscuits, because they are half whole wheat and half unbleached all-purpose flour, so they are not too grainy. Basic recipe is from "More from Macrina," by Leslie Mackie.

Ingredients:

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour.

2 tsp baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream, divided

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Shift together the flours, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in 1 1/2 cups of the cream. Using a rubber spatula, begin pulling the flour into the cream; mix just enough to combine the dough into a shaggy mass. Don't overwork the dough! When almost all the flour is incorporated, transfer the dough from the bowl onto a floured work surface and pat it into a 4-by-8 inch rectangle. Use a biscuit cutter or cut into 8 equal squares or biscuits.

3. Place the biscuits on one of the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Brush the tops of the biscuits with the remaining cream. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the biscuits are light golden brown on the edges and bottom. Cool on the sheet for 20 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Shift the flours, baking powder and salt.

Make a well in the flour and pour in the 1 1/2 cups cream. 

Pull the flour into the cream and stir till the flour is incorporated. Don't over mix.

Place the dough on a floured surface and make into a rectangle.

Cut into squares or use a biscuit cutter.

Brush the uncooked biscuits with the 2 tablespoons of cream.

Place the biscuits in the oven and bake those suckers.

Let rest on pan for 5 minutes and then let cool completely on a wire rack.

Toasted Pecan Pound Cake

I've been going through my pantry and trying to use up all of the little tid-bits in there. I found some pecans, leftover from the holidays. I really want to tone down the amount of food I have in my pantry, so I'm not having food go to waste and I want to start having more natural foods in there.

This pound cake recipe I got from my usual go-to 'The Fearless Baker," by Emily Luchetti and Lisa Weiss. Its perfect for the summer and pairs well with fresh strawberries or raspberries.

Ingredients:

1 cup pecan pieces

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp kosher salt

16 tbsp (2 sticks) unsalted butter, soften

1 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp grated lemon zest

2 large eggs

3/4 cup buttermilk or 3/4 cup whole milk mixed with 1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray or butter.

2. Spread the pecan pieces in one layer in a small baking pan and put in the (preheated) oven. Set a timer for 10 minutes and check the nuts to see if they're a light golden brown. If not, toast 2 minutes longer. Set aside to cool.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. Set aside. 

4. Using the stand mixer, or the medium bowl and a handheld mixer, on a medium-low speed, beat the butter, sugar, and lemon zest until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on medium speed until well combined before adding the second egg. Scrape down the side of the bowl with the rubber spatula.

5. In a small bowl, stir the buttermilk with the vanilla.

6. With the mixer on low speed, add half the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Add half of the buttermilk, again mixing until combined. Add the remaining flour, then the buttermilk, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the pecans.

7. Using the rubber spatula, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly, nudging the batter into the corners of the pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

8. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Run a small knife around the cake to loosen it from the pan and invert it onto a piece of parchment or plate. Let the cake cool to room temperature before slicing.

Toast the pecans

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.

Remove the toasted pecans from the oven.

Beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest,

Beat till creamy.

Add one egg at a time and beat.

Add the vanilla to the buttermilk.

Add half the flour and mix well.

Add half the buttermilk

Looking good!

Add the rest of the buttermilk and flour mixture and mix well in between each addition. 

Chop up the pecans, if they're not already chopped.

Stir in the pecans to the batter.

Spread evenly in a bread pan and bake.

Let sit in the pan for 15 minutes.

Remove from the pan and let cool completely. Enjoy!

Pumpkin, Orange and Poppy Seed Cake

This is my take on the recipe from "Bake, The Essential Companion," by Alison Thompson. Its a super moist and flavorful cake. Next time, I need to use a bigger pan, so more of the syrup will be absorbed into the cake. 

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups unsalted butter, diced, softened

1 1/2 cups superfine sugar

4 eggs

Grated zest of 3 oranges

Grated zest of 3 lemons

1/4 cup poppy seeds

2 2/3 cups self-rising flour, sifted

1 1/4 cups canned organic pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

Syrup

1 1/2 cups sugar

6 tbsp freshly-squeezed orange juice

6 tbsp freshly-squeezed lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a 10-in round or square pan with parchment paper.

2. Beat the butter and superfine sugar, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on high speed for 5 minutes until pale and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the orange and lemon zests, poppy seeds, sifted flour and pumpkin. Mix on low speed until combined.

3. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. (While cake is baking, prepare the syrup.)

4. To make the syrup, combine the sugar, lemon juice and orange juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring, then remove from the heat.

5. Pour the hot syrup over the cake as soon as it comes out of the oven. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan. 

Place parchment paper in the bottom of the pan. This will make it easier to remove the cake later.

Beat the butter and sugar.

Beat till pale and creamy.

Add the lemon and orange zests. 

Shift the flour into the mixing bowl.

Add the pumpkin.

Save the lemons and oranges for juicing.

Add the poppy seeds and mix together.

Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake.

Enjoy!