Cool as a Cucumber
Bread and Butter Pickles are my favorite summer flavor. I’m addicted. If you’re lucky enough to have cucumbers growing in your garden you probably share the feeling. I don’t have a garden, but we are regular members of Johnson’s Backyard Garden CSA. On Tuesdays a big box of fresh picked produce arrives on our doorstep. Right now cucumbers are plentiful. Johnson’s gives a generous amount of small pickling cucumbers which are perfect for making a quick batch of bread and butter pickles.
Bread & Butter Pickles
The simple summer staple got its name during The Great Depression. Cucumbers grow like weeds and are inexpensive produce making them readily available during tough times. People made bread and butter sandwiches and added preserved pickles to dress up the meager meal.
For this recipe, use smaller pickling cucumbers straight from the garden, Farmer’s Market, or your CSA. I bet your local grocery store has them stocked in the summer months too. I like to use a medium sweet onion sliced super thin.
For this recipe you don’t need any special canning equipment. Just your favorite jars! I’m partial to Weck and le Parfait (shown in photo) jars. If I want to be extra fancy or am making bread and butter pickles for a gift, I take the time to pull out my mandolin. The crinkle cut gives the pickles an added touch and I love the extra thin onion slices.
Bread & Butter pickles are a sweet summer treat to take to a neighbor. I would be friends for life with anyone who showed up on my doorstep with a jar. Better yet? Invite friends to your Turquoise Table for a summer lunch of pimento cheese sandwiches, bread & butter pickles and basil lemonade.
Bread & Butter Pickles
Transform cucumbers into a sweet and tangy summer treat. No canning required. Refrigerator pickles are tasty and so simple to make you’ll keep them on hand all summer.
1– 1.5 lbs pickling cucumbers, sliced 1/4″ thick
1 tbs salt
1 small onion, sliced thin
1 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons mustard seeds
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
Instructions
With a mandolin or sharp knife, slice cucumbers 1/4-inch thick. Combine sliced cucumbers and salt in a medium sized bowl. Cover and chill for 1 -2 hours. Drain cucumbers and rinse with cold water. Drain well and return to bowl. Add sliced onions and toss gently.
In a medium saucepan combine vinegars, sugars, mustard seeds, peppercorns, celery seeds, and turmeric. Bring to a boil and simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
Pour hot vinegar mixture over the cucumbers, let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. With a slotted spoon transfer the pickles and onions to glass container(s). Pour the pickling liquid evenly over the pickles until jar(s) are full. Store in refrigerator up to 1 month.
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