Our backyard garden did really well this past growing season. We planted 6 cucumber plants in late spring and ended up with a slew of cucumbers all season long. One thing I enjoy making with some of the cucumbers that we harvest is homemade Sweet Cucumber Pickles that I home can using my water bath canner. These pickles are similar to bread & butter pickles but with more of a sweet taste than a sour taste to them.

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When making these pickles I follow the recipe and instructions in my Ball Blue Book with is jam-packed with home canning recipes. I highly recommend the book to newbie and experienced canners. The recipe will yield approximate 5 pint jars of Sweet Cucumber Pickles. You’ll need a water bath canner, glass mason jars, basic home canning supplies, measuring cups, measuring spoons, etc.

Home Canning Sweet Cucumber Pickles Recipe

3 lbs. brined cucumbers, desalted
3 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 quart white vinegar, 5% acidity
2 sticks cinnamon
1 Tbsp. slivered fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. whole cloves
1 Tbsp. whole mace

Prep: Measure 3 pounds brined, desalted cucumbers. Tie spices in a spice bag.

Cook: Combine granulated sugar and vinegar in a large saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Add spice bag and cucumbers. Boil mixture for 3 minutes. Transfer cucumbers and brine to a pickling container, cover container. Store container at 65 degrees to 70 degrees F for 3 days. Each day drain off brine, bring brine to a boil, pour over cucumbers. Remove and discard spice bag after the third day. Drain cucumbers, reserving brine. Bring brine to a boil.

Fill: Pack pickles into a hot jar leaving 1/2″ headspace. Ladle hot brine over pickles, leaving 1/2″ headspace. Remove air bubbles. Clear jar rim. Center lid on jar and adjust band to fingertip tight. Place jar on rack elevated over simmering water in a boiling water bath canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process: Lower the rack into simmering water. Water must cover the jars by 1-inch. Adjust heat to medium high, cover canner and bring water to a rolling boil. Process pint size jars for 15 minutes. Turn off heat, and remove cover. Let jars cool for 5 minutes in the canner. Remove jars from the canner, do not retighten bands if loose. Cool jars for 12 hours. Check seals, label and store jars for up to 1 year.

Home Canning Tips: I recommend saving those old kitchen linens in a plastic bin and just using them for canning. Linens will get stained up during the process. Wash, dry and store them just for this purpose. You’ll always want to wear old clothing or an apron to protect your clothing. Get out all of your supplies before beginning any recipe. Re-wash jars before using them. Canning is a lot of hard work, so if possible get yourself a helper and reward them with a few jars of goodies. Make notes in your canning book or a notebook as you go along. You can refer to these notes the next time you make a recipe. I like to keep track of things to know what I liked or didn’t like during the process or within a particular recipe.

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Home canning is a great way to preserve whole kernel corn for later use. While some people prefer freezing it, I prefer canning it! You’ll need 9 to 19 pounds ears of corn for this recipe along with a steam pressure canner, glass mason jars, basic canning supplies, cutting board, corn cutter or knife, etc. The recipe will produce approximately 6 pint jars or 3 quart jars of canned corn. I ONLY use the recipe from the Ball Blue Book. I recommend using the Corn Stripper Tool from Pampered Chef which is the BEST tool for removing it from the cob.

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Here’s a tip: Save your old kitchen linens that you no longer want and use them for home canning. I keep mine in a plastic bin and use them for this purpose ONLY. Who care’s if they’re stained up…they’ll just get more during the canning process.

Home Canning Whole Kernel Corn

9 to 18 lbs. ears of corn
salt (optional)
water

Prep:  Remove husk, and silk from ears of corn. Wash under cold running water, drain. Cut corn off the cob. Start at the small end and cut downward to the stem end. Do not scrape the cob.

Cook: Measure cut corn. Put cut corn in a large saucepan. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, if desired, and 1 cup boiling water for every 2 cups of corn. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes.

Fill: Pack hot corn and liquid into a hot jar, leaving 1″ headspace.

Remove air bubbles. Clean jar rim. Center lid on jar and adjust band to fingertip tight. Place jar on the rack in a pressure canner containing 2″ of simmer water. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process: Place lid on canner and turn to a locked position. Adjust heat to medium-high. Vent steam for 10 minutes. Put weighted gauge on vent; bring pressure to 10 pounds (psi). Process pint jars for 55 minutes or quart jars for 1 hour 25 minutes. Turn off heat. Cool canner to zero pressure. After 5 minutes remove lid. Let jars cool 10 minutes. Remove jars from canner. Do not retighten lose bands.

Cool jars for 12 hours. Check seals. Label jars and store in a dry, cool place. They will keep for 12-18 months if properly processed and sealed.

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