Bread and Butter Pickles

Hell no, did I ever eat Bread and Butter Pickles when I was a kid.  They were yellowy, way too sweet and were a far cry from the snappy dill pickles that I loved.  But of course, after many years of being an adult bread and butter pickles made their way onto my plate and have never left.  In fact, the bread and butter pickles are now a staple on my charcuterie board, which is just a snobby name for a meat and cheese tray.  But the sweet pickles are the perfect topping to the soft cheeses and the crunchy crackers.   

Makes about 1 quart

1 pound of cucumbers, sliced into ¼ inch slices (3-4 medium cucumbers)

1 medium onion

2 tablespoons of canning salt.

½ cup of sugar

½ tablespoon of mustard seed

½ teaspoons of turmeric

½ teaspoons of celery seed

½ teaspoon ginger (fresh or ground, but fresh is best)

½ teaspoons of peppercorns

¾ cup vinegar

Combine cucumber and onion slices in a large bowl, layer with salt and cover with ice cubes.  Let sit for an hour and a half.  Drain, rinse.  Drain, rinse.  Combine the remaining ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Place hot pickles into jars.  At this point you can put them in the refrigerator or can them.  When canning following the proper canning process. ¼ inch head space with 10 minutes in a water bath.