Bread-And-Butter Pickles (Cukes or Summer Squash)

Ingredients

• 6 lbs cucumbers (4- to 5-inch pickling cukes or 1 to 1 1/2 inch diameter zucchini or summer squash)
• 8 cups onions, thinly sliced (about 3 pounds)
• 1/2 cup salt (pickling type)
• 4 cups vinegar (5 percent)
• 4 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons mustard seeds
• 1 1/2 tablespoons celery seeds
• 1 tablespoon turmeric, ground
• 1 cup pickling lime (optional, for use in variation below for making firmer pickles) (optional)

Directions

1. 1

   Wash cucumbers or squash. Cut 1/16-inch off blossom end and discard. Cut into 3/16-inch slices. Combine cucumbers and onions in a large bowl. Add salt. Cover with 2 inches crushed or cubed ice. Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours, adding more ice as needed.

2. 2

   Combine remaining ingredients in a large pot. Boil 10 minutes. Drain and add cucumbers and onions and slowly reheat to boiling.

3. 3

   Fill pint jars with slices and cooking syrup, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process 10 minutes for under 1000 foot elevation, 15 minutes for 1000 to 6000 foot elevation & 20 minutes for over 6000 foot elevation or use low-temperature pasteurization treatment referenced in recipe description.

4. 4

   Variation for firmer pickles:

5. 5

   Wash cucumbers. Cut 1/1 6-inch off blossom end and discard. Cut into 3/16-inch slices. Mix 1 cup pickling lime and 1/2 cup salt to 1 gallon water in a 2- to 3-gallon crock or enamelware container. Avoid inhaling lime dust while mixing the lime-water solution.

6. 6

   Soak cucumber slices in lime water for 12 to 24 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove from lime solution, rinse, and resoak 1 hour in fresh cold water. Repeat the rinsing and soaking steps two more times. Handle carefully, as slices will be brittle. Drain well.

7. 7

   Procede as with step #2 above.