Grandma Hellewell's Mustard Pickles

8 qts small cucumbers, pearl onions* and califlower pieces (Grandma usually left the cucumbers out since we preferred the onions and the califlower.)
Imerse in salted water (1/2 cup salt to 1 quart of water) and soak overnight.
Drain vegetables and place in large pan.
Cover with vinegar.
Add 2 1/2 cups of sugar.
Put home mixed pickling spice in cheesecloth bag (tied shut) and add to the mixture. Bring to a boil and cook for a few minutes.
Remove bag of pickling spices.
Mix together 1 cup flour, 6 TBSP dry mustard, 1 1/2 Tbsp Tumeric and enough cold water to make a paste. Add two cups of the hot vinegar to the paste and stir well. Add to the pickle mixture, cooking until thickened and seal hot.
*An easier way to peel the pearl onions is to place them in the sink and pour boiling water over them. Let is sit for a few minutes then drain and rub the outer layers off.

Mustard Pickles

Break 1 large head cauliflower in flowerets
Cut 1 quart small green tomatoes in wedges
3 green peppers in strips
1 1/2 pounds 2 inch cucumbers in halves lengthwise
Peel 3 cups pickling onions (this takes a while but well worth it)
Combine 1 cup granulated pickling salt and 4 cups water; let stand in cool place overnight.

Drain; cover with boiling water; let stand 10 minutes; drain. Combine 2 cups sugar
1 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 cup dry mustard, 1 tablespoon turmeric 5 cups cider vinegar, and 5 cups water. Cook and stir till thick and bubbly. Add vegetables, cook till tender. Fill hot jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace; adjust lids. Process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes (time when water returns to boil.) Makes 10 pints.

(This recipe come from the Better Homes & Garden Cookbook. My family only likes the cauliflower and the onions so I omit the peppers and cukes and add more onions and cauliflower.)

Hot Pepper Jelly

1 box Sure-Jell Pectin
1 c cider vinegar
5 cups sugar
4 cups prepared peppers
(I use 10 jalapenos, 3 to 4 habanero peppers
These are also called Scotch Bonnets – little
Orange ball-type peppers, the rest a mixture of
Green (2), red, yellow peppers)

See complete instructions in pectin box (cooked jam and jelly directions), but I’ve abbreviated them here:

Bring Peppers, vinegar, pectin, and ½ tsp butter or margarine to full rolling boil.

Stir in sugar quickly. Bring back to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off any foam.

Tips:
· Use gloves!!
· Do NOT use the food processor – it does something to the capsacin in the peppers. I use the food chopper from Pampered Chef.
· It may take up to a week to set up to a jelly consistency.
· Hotter – If you want it hotter, keep the seeds from the jalapenos and habaneros in the pepper mix. (sometimes if it is too hot, it won’t set up)
· I like it over cream cheese with crackers, my friend’s son likes it for toast, or they also use it as a basting sauce for chicken on the grill.
· I have used purple green peppers, but it kind of made the sauce a little muddy colored. But try anything once, right??

Putting food by (aka Canning)

I've been thinking about canning lately and thought this might be a good forum to get some good ideas. Here in North Carolina there don't seem to be many people who can—maybe it's a generational thing or maybe a geographical. I don't know. But I wonder do you can? And if you do, is there something that you have found really successful? Or anything that turned out disastrous? Use the comments to tell us about it.