If
put in large stone jars, invert a saucer or plate over the top
of the pickles to keep them well under the vinegar. Xever
put pickles in any thing that has held any kind of grease,
and never let them freeze. The nicest way to put up pickles
is bottling, sealing while hot, and keeping in a cool, dark
place. Use a cask or large stone jars for pickles in brine,
keep them well under, and have more salt than will dissolve,
so that there will always be plenty at the bottom of the ves-
sel. The brine for pickles should be strong enough to bear
an egg. Make it in the proportion of a heaping pint of
coarse salt to a gallon of water. In scalding cucumber
pickles to green them, use cabbage, grape leaves or grass,
covering the bottom, sides, and top of the kettle, and a large
table-spoonful of pulverized alum to a gallon ; it will assist
in greening and render them crisp and tender. In scalding
(85)
86
Tlie New Kentucky Home Cook Book.
pickles always use weak vinegar, mixing about half water
and half vinegar. Pickles should never boil when greening,
but only simmer, or keep scalding hot, until green. Pickles
are not very wholesome, even when made with the greatest
care, but if they must be eaten, it is best to make them at
home, as those sold in market are often colored a beautiful
green with sulphate of copper, which is a deadly jDoison; or
cooked in brass or copper vessels, which produces the same
result in an indirect way. Always use pure cider vinegar,
and as heating weakens vinegar it should only be brought
to a boiling point and immediately poured on the pickles.
Keep pickles from the air, and see that the vinegar is at
least two inches over the top of the pickles in the jar. A
dry wooden spoon should be used in handling pickles. Vin-
egar prepared in the spring, by putting in spices and keep-
ing in the sun until fall, is the best for pickling.
To Prepare Greex Pickle Vinegar. — Take two gal-
lons of vinegar, one pint of black mustard-seed, four ounces
of ginger, three ounces whole allspice, one ounce of cloves,
four ounces of whole black pepper, one ounce of celery-
seed, three pounds of brown sugar, two handfuls of scraped
horse-radish, one handful of garlic, three sliced lemons.
Prepare in May, and sun all summer.
Yellow Pickle Vinegar. — Take two gallons of pure
cider vinegar, one pint of black mustard-seed, one pint of
white mustard-seed, two ounces of ground mustard, four
ounces. of white ginger, three ounces of black pepper, three-
ounces of allspice, one ounce of mace, one ounce of cloves,
two ounces of tumeric, one large handful of horse-radish,
one dozen onions, one level table-spoonful of salt, one gill
of celery-seed, six lemons, five pounds of sugar. This should
be mixed in the spring, and set in the sun three months, or
all summer.
The New Kentucky Home Cook Book.
87
CUCUMBER PICKLES.
Page 41
Presented as published in 1884. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
If put in large stone jars, invert a saucer or plate over the top of the pickles to keep them well under the vinegar. Never put pickles in any thing that has held any kind of grease, and never let them freeze. The nicest way to put up pickles is bottling, sealing while hot, and keeping in a cool, dark place. Use a cask or large stone jars for pickles in brine, keep them well under, and have more salt than will dissolve, so that there will always be plenty at the bottom of the vessel. The brine for pickles should be strong enough to bear an egg. Make it in the proportion of a heaping pint of coarse salt to a gallon of water. In scalding cucumber pickles to green them, use cabbage, grape leaves or grass, covering the bottom, sides, and top of the kettle, and a large table-spoonful of pulverized alum to a gallon ; it will assist in greening and render them crisp and tender. In scalding
(85)
Tlie New Kentucky Home Cook Book.
pickles always use weak vinegar, mixing about half water and half vinegar. Pickles should never boil when greening, but only simmer, or keep scalding hot, until green. Pickles are not very wholesome, even when made with the greatest care, but if they must be eaten, it is best to make them at home, as those sold in market are often colored a beautiful green with sulphate of copper, which is a deadly poison; or cooked in brass or copper vessels, which produces the same result in an indirect way. Always use pure cider vinegar, and as heating weakens vinegar it should only be brought to a boiling point and immediately poured on the pickles. Keep pickles from the air, and see that the vinegar is at least two inches over the top of the pickles in the jar. A dry wooden spoon should be used in handling pickles. Vinegar prepared in the spring, by putting in spices and keeping in the sun until fall, is the best for pickling.
To Prepare Greex Pickle Vinegar. — Take two gallons of vinegar, one pint of black mustard-seed, four ounces of ginger, three ounces whole allspice, one ounce of cloves, four ounces of whole black pepper, one ounce of celeryseed, three pounds of brown sugar, two handfuls of scraped horse-radish, one handful of garlic, three sliced lemons. Prepare in May, and sun all summer.
Yellow Pickle Vinegar. — Take two gallons of pure cider vinegar, one pint of black mustard-seed, one pint of white mustard-seed, two ounces of ground mustard, four ounces. of white ginger, three ounces of black pepper, three ounces of allspice, one ounce of mace, one ounce of cloves, two ounces of tumeric, one large handful of horse-radish, one dozen onions, one level table-spoonful of salt, one gill of celery-seed, six lemons, five pounds of sugar. This should be mixed in the spring, and set in the sun three months, or all summer.
The New Kentucky Home Cook Book.