Pickles In A Jar

Photo: flickr user Graham and Sheila

Ingredients

gallon medium-sized cucumbers to fit jug

4 tablespoons canning salt

4 cups white vinegar

2 tablespoons alum

3 tablespoons mixed pickling spices

Preparation

Wash cucumbers and pack whole in a glass gallon jug.

Add canning salt, white vinegar, alum, and mixed pickling spices

If jar is not full, top off with cold water. Put lid on jar and let stand on cabinet for three weeks.

Drain. Cut cucumbers into chunks, slices or strips as desired. Return to jar. Add 8 cups sugar, or less according to taste (Elba uses four cups, Dorothy Phillips uses six). Let stand on cabinet top 3 to 4 days, until sugar dissolves to make its own juice. Store in the refrigerator. Add a bud of garlic in the bottom of the jar to add more flavor, if desired.