House Made Is Best {Recipe: Refrigerator Sweet Pickles}

Lately a few restaurants that I have been to have had what they call "house made pickles" on the plate.  Up until trying these, I have not been the biggest fan of pickles. House made pickles are so much better than store bought ones!

Refrigerator Sweet Pickles

Ingredients

6 cups thinly sliced pickling cucumbers or English seedless cucumbers (about 2 pounds)*

2 cups thinly sliced onions

1 1/2 cups white vinegar 

3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds 
1/2 teaspoon celery seeds

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 cups water

Divide cucumbers and onions between two 1-quart canning jars (any glass container or containers will work, this is just what I used). 

Combine vinegar and remains ingredients, except the water, in a small saucepan; stir well and bring to a boil. Cook for 1 minute. Pour 1/2 of the liquid over the pickle/cucumber mixture in one jar, then repeat with the other 1/2  in the second jar. Add about 1 cup of water to each of the jars to make sure the cucumber/onion mixture is completely covered. Let cool completely, then cover and refrigerate. Chill for at least 4 days before serving. 

Note: Pickles may be stored in the refrigerator for up to one month. 

*I could not find pickling cucumbers at our local grocery store, so I used organic English seedless cucumbers. Pickling cucumbers maybe crisper, but the English cucumbers worked just fine. 

Enjoy!