Yellow Summer Squash Pickles

 

I am having a love affair with pickles lately.  I pickle almost everything to make them tangy-sweet, spicy, garlicky, dill-y.  Heaven!  I really cannot wait until my vegetable garden is ready to be harvested and, well, pickled.

 

 

When I kept running across various versions of this recipe, I knew I MUST make them!  I decided to tweek it to my tastes.  All of the recipes that I found called for either bell or sweet peppers, but that is for the timid, or those who refuse to head back to the produce market to get them.  As I was making the brine, it was like honey and will nicely complement the heat from the chilies. 

And I wasn't disappointed!  This brine with the Serranos are a winning combo and I pretty much sat down with the jar and a fork and had a very happy snack!

Yellow Summer Squash Pickles

The original recipe is here, but it is for sweet: http://www.thekitchn.com/summer-recipe-pickled-yellow-squash-recipes-from-the-kitchn-175125

4 medium/large yellow summer squash

2 small yellow onions

3 Serrano peppers

¼ c sea salt

1 tray ice cubes (I forewarn on this because inevitably I have no ice when a recipe calls for it!)

1 ½ c cider vinegar

1 c white vinegar

½ c water

1 c sugar

1 tbsp Ground mustard

Peel and thinly slice the squash and onions.  Thinly slice the peppers.  I do this with the slicing blade on my food processor, keeps the tears down and the hot pepper juices off of the fingers.  Put these in a LARGE bowl with the salt and lightly toss.  Dump on the ice cubes, cover the veggies with water and set aside for 30 minutes.

Drain and rinse the veggie, then set aside to fully drain while you make the brine.  In a medium sauce pan combine the vinegars, water, sugar and mustard.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally so the sugar dissolves.  When the brine begins to boil, remove from heat and set aside for 5 minutes, allowing it to cool somewhat. 

Place the veggies in a heat proof container that you wish to store them in.  I used 3 pint jars; don’t be afraid to shove them full.  Also, don’t be fooled in to thinking that I truly canned these, they are refrigerator pickles!  Pour the brine over them, leaving headroom, and allow to cool completely before storing them in the fridge.  Pickles take a few days to develop flavor, so try to keep your hands off of them for 3 to 5 days. 

Enjoy!