It Doesn't Get Any Better!

                       

In a message dated 6/13/07 5:34:26 P.M. Central Daylight Time, AOLAlerts writes:

DO you have a good bread and butter pickle recipe you would want to share??? :-)
Wish I were coming to your house for some of that good okra tonight!!! lol

That was from Carlene, in response to the last post.  And the answer is "Yes".

 

Well, actually, the recipe come from my sister Edna.  And Pete has used it for years to make his crunchy, tasty Bread and Butter pickles. 

 

4 quarts sliced medium cucumbers

4 medium white onions, sliced

2 green (bell) peppers, chopped

3 cloves of garlic

1/3 cup coarse-medium salt(pickling salt)

5 cups of sugar

3 cups of cider vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric

1 1/2 teaspoons celery seed

2 tablespoons mustard seed

 

Do not pare cucumbers; slice thin.  Add onions, peppers and whole garlic cloves.  Add salt; cover with cracked ice; mix thoroughly.  Let stand 3 hours; drain well.  Combine remaining ingredients; pour over cucumber mixture.  Heat just to a boil.  Seal in hot, sterilized jars.  Makes 8 pints.

 

(Tips:  Use only firm, fresh cucumbers.  Never try to double the recipe.  Get out all ice that did not melt before boiling.  Turn jars upside down for 5 minutes after closing them, then turn right side up for a guaranteed seal.)

 

All these additions and improvements and AOL pictures still can't keep the animation in a gif. ?!  Of course, no one ever asks me what would be most time saving/convenient for me.

 

Emmy horse is still pregnant.  No colt. Pete's decided she's keeping it to herself.

 

Thunder rolling outside.  More scattered thundershowers.  Every single day.  Almost too much water for the garden!  Now we are also gathering a few ears of sweet corn, and have picked some peas.  Cooked a big pot of purple hulls and a large skillet of smother-fried okra last night.  Some fried hot water cornbread and a few pieces of steak to round it out. 

 

Wish you all could have been here the other evening.  It was a perfect time.  Pete's sister Mary and her husband Jim came over about an hour after I got in from work.  They had brought some boudain and some wieners.  (Would you believe that neither aol spell check nor Merriam-Webster have a clue about boudain!!!  I had to use the local phone books listing of a local boudain maker to check the spelling!)  Pete fired off the grill and thawed out some country style ribs and link sausage.  I stuffed some of our good, fresh jalapeno peppers with cream cheese and wrapped bacon around them. 

 

We cleaned off the old 1950's dinning room table on the front porch.  Pete hung a drop light in the rafters.  And we broke out the old, large, green, dominoes from the pool hall daddy ran once upon a time in Carthage after he had his leg ran over by a dozer.  Plug in the box fan and point it this way!

 

We shuffled and started a round of 42 while the charcoal was burning down.  Before long, Mary's son and his wife and two young boys showed up.  Hannah had playmates and Bubba had someone to shoot the bull with.  The food went on the grill right after Mary and I beat Pete and Jim in the first game.  Pete pulled a few ears of sweet corn and threw on there too. 

 

Then we started the next game, and us girls did some high bidding and some quick setting of the men to win that one with the men only having one mark to their credit.  Bubba found the oldies tapes, swamp gold, classic country and Cajun that Pete's mama had made for Pete from the treasure trove of old 45's they had.

 

Conversation, aggravation, laughter.  One more game of Forty-two.  Seem we almost always play three.  This time we went back and forth and back and forth until the guys finally emerged victorious by one mark.  Get that food off the pit!  Slice some tomatoes.  Cut up some cucumbers.  Where's the plates and the light bread?  Before long everyone is stuffed.  A little cleaning up.  Leave most of that; I'll deal with it tomorrow. 

 

Soon, things wind down and they begin to saunter on off to home.  Bug is still wide awake, even though it is after 1:00 AM.  It had been a very hot, muggy day earlier.  And I had surely thought of jumping in the pool to cool down.  But too much company.  All that has to be is put away.  Come on Bug, let's go for a late swim!  And we jump in and cool off and relax with a canopy of stars overhead. 

 

Get out, dry off and ease on toward bed.  Sweet dreams.  It doesn't get any better, people! 

Tags: Bread & Butter Pickle Recipe, Playing 42, Late night swim