Sunday night and we have a fridge full of cucumbers and all the ingredients to make dill pickles. I am not up for a bunch of jars and all that preparation. All I want is to get those cukes into some brine. Found a 4 Litre sealing glass jar that looks perfect for a big batch to keep refrigerated. That should make it quick and easy. Here are some guidelines I am going to go by from epicurious that have been Greg’d. I have tripled them and embellished.

• 20 small pickling cucumbers (about 3pounds/1.5kg)
• 2 L white vinegar
• 2 L (500 mL) water
• 10 tablespoons (25 mL) pickling salt–how about some sea salt
• 20 heads fresh dill and 4 teaspoons dill seeds –got plenty of this in the garden
• 20  small cloves garlic

1. Cut a thin slice from the ends of each cucumber

2. Meanwhile, combine vinegar, water, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

3. Place 5 head dry dill  and 10 cloves garlic into the 4L jumbo self sealing big daddy jar; pack in cucumbers. Pour boiling vinegar mixture over cucumbers to within 1/2 inch (1 cm) of rim (head space). Put in Fridge.

Tip:
Garlic may turn blue or green in the jar. Nothing to be alarmed about, it is only the effect of the acid on the natural pigments in the garlic. If removed and eaten it will have affects that will make you parnoid that people think you are strange.

Extra! Tips from Epicurious:

help. help. could not find pickling salt at Woolies. Bought 4 different kinds. Now to pick which one it the gun.

• Pickling salt is free of the additives found in table salt, which can discolor homemade pickles. The popular brand Mrs. Wages is available online at www.canningpantry.com/pickling-salt.html. If you use regular table salt, the pickles will taste fine, but they may turn dark, with cloudy liquid. Do not substitute kosher salt, as the difference in texture can result in incorrect measurements.

• “The proportion of water to vinegar necessary to inhibit the growth of organisms produces a very sour pickle,” says Topp. “While you can’t change this proportion, you can safely add up to one tablespoon of sugar if you want to slightly sweeten the pickles.”

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fast-Favorite-Garlic-Dill-Pickles-230707#ixzz1aGqogaFq
Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fast-Favorite-Garlic-Dill-Pickles-230707#ixzz1aGpK4dNm

How to Make Beef Stock

INGREDIENTS

4-6 pounds meaty beef stock bones (with lots of marrow), including some knuckle bones if possible, cut to expose the center marrow, and include at least a couple veal bones if you can, for their gelatin
1/2 to 1 pound of stew meat (chuck or flank steak) and/or beef scraps, cut into 2-inch chunks (optional)
Olive oil
1-2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
1-2 large carrots, cut into 1-2 inch segments
Handful of celery tops, or 1 large celery rib, cut into 1 inch segments
2-3 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
Handful of parsley, stems and leaves
1-2 bay leaves
10 peppercorns
METHOD

1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Rub a little olive oil over the stew meat pieces, carrots, and onions. Place stock bones, stew meat or beef scraps, carrots and onions in a large, shallow roasting pan. Roast in oven for about 45 minutes, turning the bones and meat pieces half-way through the cooking, until nicely browned. If bones begin to char at all during this cooking process, lower the heat. They should brown, not burn.

2 When the bones and meat are nicely browned, remove them and the vegetables and place them in a large (12 to 16 quart) stock pot. Place the roasting pan on the stove-top on low heat (will cover 2 burners), pour 1/2 cup to a cup of hot water over the pan and use a metal spatula to scrape up all of the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Pour the browned bits and water into the stock pot.

3 Add celery tops, garlic, parsley, bay leaves, and peppercorns to the stock pot. Fill the stock pot with cold water, to 1 to 2 inches over the top of the bones. Put the heat on high and bring the pot to a low simmer and then reduce the heat to low. If you have a candy or meat thermometer, the temperature of the water should be between 180° and 200°F (boiling is 212°F). The stock should be at a bare simmer, just a bubble or two coming up here and there. (You may need to put the pot on your smallest burner on the lowest temp, or if you are using an oven-safe pot, place it in the oven at 190°F.) Cover the pot loosely and let simmer low and slow for 3-6 hours. Do not stir the stock while cooking. Stirring will mix the fats in with the stock, clouding up the stock.

4 As the stock cooks, fat will be released from the bone marrow and stew meat and rise to the top. From time to time check in on the stock and use a large metal spoon to scoop away the fat and any scum that rises to the surface. (Do not put this fat down your kitchen drain by the way. It will solidify and block your pipes. Put it in a bowl or jar to save for cooking or to discard.)

5 At the end of cooking time (when you want to end the cooking is up to you, 3 hours minimum, 6 to 8 hours if you can do it) use tongs or a slotted spoon to gently remove the bones and vegetables from the pot (discard them, though if you see a chunk of marrow, taste it, it’s delicious). Line another large pot (8-quart) with a fine mesh sieve, covered with a couple layers of cheesecloth if you have it. Pour the stock through the sieve to strain it of remaining solids. Let cool to room temperature then chill in the refrigerator.

One the stock has chilled, any fat remaining will have risen to the top and solidified. The fat forms a protective layer against bacteria while the stock is in the refrigerator. If you plan to freeze the stock however, remove and discard the fat, pour the stock into a jar or plastic container. (You can also remove the fat, and boil the stock down, concentrating it so that it doesn’t take as much storage space.) Leave an inch head room from the top of the stock to the top of the jar, so that as the stock freezes and expands, it will not break the container.
Makes about 4 quarts.
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