Pickle Update

Oh my, the pickles taste great. They're not supposed to be eaten yet, but we just had to try them.

Here's my recipe (thanks to onebadpenny's recipe at Instructables and for the how-to basics and photos). There are plenty of recipes for refrigerator pickles posted online. But this one has a distinct advantage: absolutely no cooking necessary at all.

Cold Refrigerator Pickles

2 large cucumbers
2 cups cold water
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sea salt
2 teaspoons sugar
6-8 whole peppercorns
Freshly ground black pepper
2 large cloves garlic
2 sprigs fresh dill

Directions
1. After cutting off the ends, slice cucumbers in half and then, to achieve the desired spear shape, cut these halves lengthwise into sixths.
2. Peel and then cut the garlic cloves into large pieces, then smash these pieces to fully release their oils.
3. Pour the cold water into a bowl. Then stir in the salt, vinegar, peppercorns, and ground pepper. Dissolve as much of the salt and sugar as possible.
4. Fill a quart-size, wide-mouth Ball jar.
5. Pour in liquid and add sprigs of dill.
6. Refrigerate for two days (be sure to shake jar on second day).