Piccalilli

 Piccalilli is pretty darn old. I was able to trace this recipe back at least 100 years. It's probably much older than that, since it's a way to preserve vegetables from the garden in a "pickle", which is the easiest type of preservation method, requiring no special equipment other than good quality preserving jars and lids. However, I do recommend picking up a set of canning tools for safety's sake. 

The recipe below is from a Kerr Bottle Company preserving book from the early part of the 20th century. 

Terms to Know: 

A peck is 8 dry quarts or 16 pints. Four pecks make a bushel. 

Gherkins are a smaller variety of cucumber, also called a "pickling cucumber." They can be nubby-skinned. They are easy to grow, and many gardeners have them in large numbers because they are easy to pickle. 

Ingredients: 

8 quarts fresh green tomatoes

1-quart large pickling cucumbers (aka gherkins)

2 green peppers

4 onions

1 cup salt 

1 cup sugar

1 T. whole peppercorns

1 T. celery seed

1 T. mustard seed

1 t. whole cloves

2 quarts cider vinegar

Equipment: Large colander over a bowl. 8-12 large quart canning jars, lids and rings, cleaned well. Potholders. If your large saucepan has a pouring spout, give yourself bonus points. Ladle. Wooden stirring spoons are recommended, as they don't transfer heat as much. Two towels. If you have a set of canning tongs (for lifting jars) and the magnetic lid retriever, bring them out on Day Two. Optional but a good idea: masking tape and a Sharpie to use as a label. 

Day One: 

Do not try to cheat and use a food processor. It will make mush and is not what you want. I recommend rough chopping the vegetables and salting them in the evening before going to bed, when all kitchen activity has ceased. Scrape all the chopped vegetables into the colander and salt them. Put the colander over the bowl to allow for drainage. An alternative to merely setting the chopped and salted vegetables in a colander is to tie them in a cheesecloth and hang them over a bowl or sink to drain overnight. The fluid will drip out and save you a bit of trouble. Go to bed. 

Day Two: 

Wash and sterilize your jars and lids in the dishwasher. Keep them (jars and lids) hot in a warm (200-250F) oven until needed. You can keep the rings in a bowl nearby. They don't have to be hot. Heat up the spices, sugar, and vinegar in the large saucepan, then add the drained salted vegetables. Allow it to come to a good, rolling boil, stirring with the wooden spoon. In the meantime, lay one towel in an out of the way spot on the counter. This will be where the jars are set to cool for about 24 hours. 

Put a towel in the sink to even out the bottom and prevent the hot jars from touching the cool sink. Using the canning tongs, move the hot jars into the sink. Carefully use a ladle to spoon the vegetables in the jars, all the way to the shoulder of the jar. When the vegetables are evenly distributed in the jars, ladle in the vinegar and spices to fill the jars to the bottom of the place where the rings go. If you have one weird jar with a few veggies and some vinegar, but not enough to fill the jar all the way, that jar will be the "first used" jar. 

With a wet paper towel, wipe all the tops of the jars before putting on the lids and rings. This helps the lids seal down better. Use the magnetic tool (if you have one) to place the hot lids on the jars. Put on all the rings and seal finger tight. You don't have to work so hard at this that you burn your hands on the jars. Just get it finger tight. Transfer the jars to the prepared towel on the counter, using the canning tongs or potholders. They are probably boiling hot, so safety first! 

For an extra thrill, sit nearby and wait for the satisfying POP! sound as the jars cool and seal. After cooling overnight on the counter or other safe space, unscrew the rings and check the seal of the lid. If any lid lifts off easily, store in the refrigerator and use soon as you finish the weird jar. Wash and store the rings for another use. Label everything with the name Piccalilli and the date made. Store all the well-sealed jars in the pantry or wherever you keep all unopened jars of pickles. 

Serving suggestion: Use as you would any other sweet pickle relish. It's great in potato salad, on top of hot dogs and sausages, etc. Take it with you on a picnic.