If you’re not a sweet pickle fan, you should try these wonderful dill pickles that my friend Lisa’s grandmother makes. Sweet pickles are generally sliced, but these are served whole. They are deliciously dilled and better than any store-bought pickle, I guarantee it!

　　

Ingredients

makes 5 to 6 quarts

　　12 large sprigs fresh dill

　　6 garlic cloves, peeled

　　6 pounds small cucumbers, no more than 1 inch in diameter

　　2 cups cider vinegar

　　1/2 cup sugar

　　1/2 cup rock salt

　　

Step 1

Wash and rinse 6 1-quart canning jars. Place a sprig of dill and a clove of garlic in the bottom of each jar. Pack the cucumbers into the jars and place a large sprig of dill on top of each. In a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 quarts water and the vinegar, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Pour the vinegar mixture over the cucumbers. Wipe the tops of the jars and close with canning lids and rings. Seal the jars by processing in a hot-water bath (page 36) for 3 minutes.

　　

From Gwen

Step 2

I first ate these wonderful pickles when Lisa brought them to supper in Oklahoma. Those large sprigs of dill were beautiful in the jar.

　　Reprinted with permission from Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen: Recipes from My Family to Yours by Trisha Yearwood with Gwen Yearwood and Beth Yearwood Bernard. Copyright © 2008 by Trisha Yearwood. Published by Crown Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.Trisha Yearwood is a three-time Grammy-award winning country music star and the author of the bestselling cookbook Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen. She is married to megastar Garth Brooks.