Refrigerator & Freezer Pickles

I love sweet pickles!  So do many of the kids.  But I've been growing frustrated lately by the ingredient list at the store.

High fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors and colorings.  All that junk for a delicious slice of pickled cucumber.

What's a mom to do?

Check the garden and find some cucumbers and start searching the internet for an easy recipe that doesn't require a lot of work and crazy ingredients!

I found just the one!

You can find all of the details here.

We've made a couple of batches of freezer pickles, and two of refrigerator pickles.  And most of the fridge ones are already gone.

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that you don't need a ton of cucumbers to proceed.  It seems like mine are ripening in short stages, and trying to get enough all at one time to can is hard.  

Don't those look tasty?  You just need vinegar, a few simple spices, an onion and cucumbers.  Oh--and some salt.  I just used sea salt.  Pickling salt works too!

These refrigerator pickles are ready in 24 hours.  The freezer ones need at least a week in the freezer. I put those ones in freezer bags instead of glass jars to save room.

One fun way I've experimented with this recipe is with pickled carrots.

I followed the same brine recipe, and just poured it over sliced carrots instead of cucumbers.  They were delicious! I'm sure other vegetables would taste good as well. 

Does your family like pickles?  Have you ever tried making fridge or freezer ones?