Sweet Pickles, Cauli Trees, and Onions
My Aunt Nonie's and Great-Grandma's recipe. I remember asking for the little cauliflower trees and they were my favorite. It has been several years that I have looked for this recipe and all I had to do was ask Mom. She had it saved in her cookbook. Mom said she and my sis spent all the time getting the onions ready for the pickles. I always liked the onions and the little cauliflower trees best. Made a batch in August 2005 while in Mesa, Arizona. Must remember not to cook as long as the recipe calls for when in the lower altitudes. The onions were a little overcooked.
My Aunt Nonie's and Great-Grandma's recipe. I remember asking for the little cauliflower trees and they were my favorite. It has been several years that I have looked for this recipe and all I had to do was ask Mom. She had it saved in her cookbook. Mom said she and my sis spent all the time getting the onions ready for the pickles. I always liked the onions and the little cauliflower trees best. Made a batch in August 2005 while in Mesa, Arizona. Must remember not to cook as long as the recipe calls for when in the lower altitudes. The onions were a little overcooked.
- 4 cups water
- 1/4 teaspoon whole cloves
- 8 cups sugar
- syrup:
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 2 quarts water
- vegetables step 1:
- 5 quarts cucumber cut crosswise
- 1 quart white pearl onions skinned
- 1 1/2 quarts cauliflower flowerets
- vegetables step 2:
- 1 quart vinegar
- 2 teaspoons tumeric
- 5 cups vinegar
- 1/2 box pickling spice
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard seed
- Carbohydrate 33.8124183047482 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.119383082657112 g
- Fiber 1.12497355139553 g
- Protein 0.921532946367535 g
- Saturated Fat 0.0352519685726286 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (245g)
- Sodium 10.0429918040515 mg
- Sugar 32.6874447533527 g
- Trans Fat 0.0370453932161961 g
- Calories 143 calories
Step-by-step
- To Prepare Vegetables for Canning:
- Take 1 cup salt and 4 quarts water; pour over pickle vegi's. Let stand four hours. Drain salt water.
- Add vinegar, 2 quarts water and tumeric. Boil 20 minutes. Drain again and wash in cold water.
- Syrup:
- Mix syrup group of ingredients in large saucepan. Boil 40 minutes.
- Can:
- Pack into vegetables into 10 pint size sterilized jars. Pour on hot syrup. Place cop seal and rings and secure on jars. Cover and boil 5 minutes in hot pack canner pot.
Many home preservers fail by skipping the initial four-hour salted water soak, which draws excess moisture from the cucumbers and cauliflower florets to maintain a crisp bite rather than a limp texture.
- Substitute apple cider vinegar for white distilled vinegar at a 1:1 ratio if a fruitier, less sharp acidity is desired in the final syrup.
- Adjust boiling durations downward by approximately one minute for every 1,000 feet of elevation gain above sea level to prevent the pearl onions from turning mushy.
- Sterilize the ten pint-sized glass jars in boiling water immediately before packing to destroy surface bacteria that can spoil shelf-stable preserves.
- Process the sealed jars in a boiling water bath for exactly five minutes, ensuring the water covers the jar tops by at least one inch.
- Store processed jars in a cool, dark pantry for up to one year, noting that canned pickles do not freeze well because freezing ruptures the cell walls of the vegetables.
Properly canned pickled vegetables require a four-week resting period in the pantry to allow the heavy sugar syrup and pickling spices to fully penetrate the interior tissues. Once opened, keep the jars refrigerated and consume the contents within three weeks.
