Canned Beet Pickles

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 1/2 bushel beet
• 4 1/2 pints apple cider vinegar
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons pickling spices

Recipe

• 1 to cook beets, leave about 1 inch of stalk on the beets and bring to a boil in a large kettle with enough water to just cover them. it generally takes 25-30 minutes at a full boil. test with a sharp knife to make sure they are tender.
• 2 drain and cover immediately with cold water.
• 3 peel and quarter or cut into desired size chunks.
• 4 using pint measure, measure out enough prepared beets to make 12 pints and set aside.
• 5 to prepare syrup:.
• 6 in a large stainless steel or enamel kettle, mix together the vinegar, sugar, and salt.
• 7 make a spice bag by cutting a 6-in square of cotton cloth and placing the pickling spice on the square.
• 8 draw the sides together to form a bag and tie with a string or a piece of cloth. do not use twist ties.
• 9 add spice bag to the vinegar mixture and bring to a boil.
• 10 boil for 5 minutes then remove the spice bag and discard it.
• 11 pour the prepared beets into the syrup and boil for an additional ten minutes.
• 12 during this step, prepare canning jars by placing 12 jars into a hot water bath (either in the sink or in a large pan will work).
• 13 also prepare the lids (not the rings) by placing them in a small pan of boiling water. (the lids with on the inside work better than those with metal on the inside).
• 14 when beets are done boiling, fill the hot jars to 1 inch from the top of the jar and cover with hot syrup leaving 1/2 inch head space.
• 15 wipe rims of jars with damp cloth, use tongs to retrieve lids and place on jars, then seal with the rings.
• 16 process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
• 17 remove from bath and set on dry surface to cool. (i use a large bath towel to set the jars on to reduce the risk of the jars cracking from cooling too quickly).
• 18 leave at least an inch of space around each jar while cooling.
• 19 store in a cool, dark space.