Is cucumber in season? No. Do I have one anyway? Yes.

Our christmas and new year's morning traditions do not include the typical big pan of cinnamon rolls or stack of crisp waffles. Instead, we have plenty of bagels. I have mine with cream cheese, John has his with hummus, and we both have several big handfuls of crispy vegetables and fresh herbs -- various sprouts, red pepper, green pepper, red onion, spinach, parsley, and chives have all made appearances.

And what do you need to top off a big sandwich like that? PICKLES.

We lost a good four or five half-eaten jars of assorted pickles when the fridge went out a couple weeks ago. Yeah. It was not pretty. Replenishing the pickle supply was very high on the list of things to do before BIG SANDWICH MORNING arrived. So I bought a cucumber, simmered up some brine, and got going.

This is a crispy, tangy refrigerator pickle that cures quickly overnight. It takes about five minutes to make and produces some excellent results. If you want to fill your fridge with pickles, doubling or quadrupling the recipe is simple. And then you will have all the pickles in the land, for plenteous and delightful future sandwich-eating purposes.

Get pickling!


New Year's cucumber pickles
Makes 1 pint

3/8 cup water
3/8 cup apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
1 tsp pickling salt
1 English cucumber (or your choice of cucumber with few seeds & no wax)
4 peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, peeled & halved
1 tsp dill seed
1 pint jar and lid
optional canning funnel

Make your brine by combining water, vinegar, and salt in a small saucepan. Heat until the salt has dissolved. This should take 5 minutes or less.

Trim your cucumber's blossom and stem ends and cut into slices or spears. You'll need about half the cucumber to fill one pint jar if you cut it into spears, and about 3/4 of the cucumber if you cut it into slices. If you're using a smaller cucumber, such as an Armenian, you may need two to fill your jar.

Put your peppercorns, garlic, and dill seed into your jar. Pack your cucumber into the jar, pushing gently to fill as full as possible.

Using your funnel, pour your brine into the jar. Use a chopstick or rubber spatula to release any obvious air bubbles. Cap, cool, and store in the refrigerator. Age for at least 24 hours before eating.

Now you are ready to make the best possible sandwiches! FORWARD.

What are you eating for your first meals of 2015?