Dan Brume

I thought I’d share the recipe I used for dill pickles, they were some of the best tasting pickles I’ve ever had!

Dill Pickles

Ingredients

8lbs of 3″-4″ fresh cucumbers

4 cups of white vinegar

12 cups of water

2/3 cups of pickling salt

16 cloves of garlic, pealed and halved

8 sprigs of fresh dill

8 heads of fresh dill (can be substituted with 1 tsp of dill seed)

Directions

Wash the cucumbers and soak in ice water for 2-8 hours, don’t soak them for more than 8 hours.

Boil the vinegar, salt, and water in a large pot.

While the vinegar is boiling, slice the cucumbers into quarters and prepare the canning jars.

In each jar add 2 half cloves, 1 head of dill and add the cucumbers.

At the top of each jar, add 2 more cloves of garlic and a sprig of dill.

Fill the jars with the brine leaving 1″ of head space.

Wipe the rim and seal with new lids.

Give the jars a hot water bath for 15 minutes.

Label the jars and store for at least 8 weeks.

I varied the recipe in a few jars with fresh green beans instead of the sliced cucumbers as well as two jars with 1 tsp of peppercorns. I tried the beans after about a month but they didn’t seem to pick up the flavor as well as the cucumbers. I suspect they need at least 2 months to set up, but they were still pretty good. I haven’t tried the pickles with the peppercorns yet, but I’m sure they’ll have a little more zest.

The first one is the recipe for the beef jerky my Mom always made us for Christmas. My brothers and I would look forward to this every year and it was gone faster than a squirrel climbing a bird feeder.

You’ll need a dehydrator and food slicer…you could do it in the oven and have the meat sliced at the grocery store, but I prefer to do things at home and the food dehydrator is far more efficient than the oven. I try to use oven roasts when they’re on sale and make all three recipes in one batch. When all is said and done, it’s about a 70% reduction from a pound of beef once it’s finished.

Note: Mom’s instructions say to soak the meat for a few minutes, but I’ve found that soaking the meat overnight in the mix distributes it more evenly. The thickness of the slice is whatever you prefer, I like them thin and a little crunchy.

Mom’s Traditional Beef Jerky (as written on the index card)

• 2/3 c Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 oz Soy Sauce
• 1 T Maple Syrup
• 1/4 t Onion Powder
• 1/8 t Garlic Powder
• 1/4 t Ground Pepper
• 1/8 t Liquid Smoke
• 1/3 c Water
• 3-4 lbs Thin Sliced Lean Beef
• Soak the beef in the liquid a few minutes and cook for 12 – 16 hours in a very warm dehydrator.

Spicy Stuff

This name was adopted from the folks I work with and only has three ingredients.

• 1/3 c McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak seasoning
• 2/3 c Water
• 3-4 lbs Thin Sliced Lean Beef
• Soak the beef in the liquid a few minutes and cook for 12 – 16 hours in a very warm dehydrator.

A1 Jerky

As with the Spicy Stuff above, this only has three ingredients.

• 1/3 c A1 Steak Sauce.
• 2/3 c Water
• 3-4 lbs Thin Sliced Lean Beef
• Soak the beef in the liquid a few minutes and cook for 12 – 16 hours in a very warm dehydrator.

My step-mother gave me this recipe after we tried some made out of the Rhubarb from the garden. It was absolutely wonderful!

Mix and sift the following dry ingredients:

• 2 c Flour
• 1tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp Cloves
• 1 1/2 c Sugar
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Allspice

Add in:

• 1 c Oil
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 c Milk

Once mixed, fold in:

• 2 1/2 – 3 c Rhubarb

Mix together the following and sprinkle it over the top:

• 1/2 c Margarine (Soft)
• 1 c Sugar
• 1 c Flour
• 1 tsp Cinnamon

Bake for 50 minutes @ 350 degrees.