Refrigerator Pickles

My garden was out of control this year - not that I'm complaining!  We had so much of everything, especially cucumbers, and so I was at a loss as to what to do with it all.  Normally we have no problem eating the cucumbers, but we had so much and we just couldn't keep up.   So I hit the web and my cookbook collection to try and find recipes for pickles.  

I didn't have a lot of canning jars, so I decided I would just do refrigerator pickles.  One big jar of dill and another of bread and butter pickles.  I ended up using a combination of different recipes, depending on what I had on hand so I wouldn't have to buy a bunch of ingredients.  These two recipes are what I came up with, and I have to say that I was so impressed at how good they came out that next year I just may invest in the extra jars and can a bunch of these two types of pickles.  They were that good!  The only thing I am unsure about is how long they are good for in the refrigerator - some say they are good as long as store bought pickles, and others say they are only good for 30 days.  Guess it's best to be cautious and stick with the 30 day mark! ☺

Refrigerator Dill Pickles

5 pickling cucumbers, or a couple of regular sized cucumbers
2 cups cider vinegar
1 cup water
3 tbsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp celery seed
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp dill seeds
3 garlic cloves, peeled 
1 tbsp dried dill

Make sure your jars and lids are sanitized before starting.  Trim the cucumbers and quarter each of them lengthwise.  Place in a large glass bowl with 2 tbsp of the kosher salt, cover and refrigerate for two hours.  After the two hours rinse the cucumbers with fresh water and drain.  Add the water and vinegar to a small saucepan with 1 tbsp of kosher salt and bring to a boil.  Place the cucumbers and the rest of the ingredients in your jars and pour the hot brine into the container.  Let the pickles cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for one day so the flavors can develop before eating.  

Bread & Butter Refrigerator Pickles

2-3 regular sized pickles, or using pickling cucumbers
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1 tbsp mustard seeds

Make sure your jars and lids are sanitized before starting.  Thinly slice your cucumbers and pack them into your jars along with the sliced onion.  Add the vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard seeds, celery seeds and red pepper flakes to a small saucepan and bring to a boil.  Pour the hot brine over your sliced pickles and let them cool to room temperature.  Cover and refrigerate for one day so the flavors can develop before eating.