Dill Pickles

Yield: 6 to 8 pints

Ingredients

• 4 pounds small pickling cucumbers
• 4 1/4 cups water
• 4 cups white vinegar
• 6 tablespoons canning salt
• Garlic cloves, chopped
• Fresh dill or dill seed
• Peppercorns
• Mustard seed

Instructions

1. Prepare home canning jars and lids. Wash cucumbers and trim ends. Cut into halves or quarters, lengthwise.
2. Combine water, vinegar and salt; bring to boil.
3. Pack cucumbers into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
4. Add 2 heads of dill or 1/4 cup dill seed, 1/2 teaspoon mustard seed, 2 peppercorns and 1 chopped garlic clove to each jar.
5. Carefully pour hot liquid over cucumbers, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
6. Remove air bubbles with nonmetallic spatula. Adjust caps.
7. Process pints 15 minutes in boiling water bath canner.