Wacky red-hots pickles

[debbiemoose]

The 87-year-old mother of a friend of mine makes these pickles that I've never seen before and I was wondering if anyone else had or knew if there is a story behind them. She uses large cucumbers, peels them, then scoops the seeds out of the middle (leaving a ring shape). The secret ingredient is...red-hots candies. The pickles come out bright red, looking and tasting like those pickled apple rings you see at Thanksgiving. The woman lives in Ahoskie, in rural eastern NC. Here's her recipe, as written:

Red Ring Cucumber Pickles

2 gal. cucumber rings, peeled

2 cups pickling lime

8 1/2 cups cold water

Soak 24 hrs. & drain; wash and soak 3 hrs in cold water. Put in pot and cover with water, with 1 cup vinegar, 1 T alum, 1 oz. red food coloring. Simmer in this for 2 hrs., drain & throw away solution.

Heat the following and pour over cukes:

2 c. vinegar

2 c. water

10 c. sugar

8 cinnamon sticks

20 oz. red hot candy

Let stand over night; drain off & reheat two mornings; put back over cukes, keep covered; 3rd day, reheat together and pack in jars.

They are really quite good...if odd...Any thoughts?

[racheld]

Yep. Had many a one of these on a little doilied plate, along with creamcheese finger sandwiches and squirt-cheese in Bugles. This was the garnish du jour of my youth, and everybody's Mama made them. Except one enterprising lady who thought they'd be nicer colored GREEN---try dropping a few drops of McCormick green into a pot with redhots...neither the pickles nor the pot were ever the same again.

I'd forgotten these little gems. They were of the era of Make-any-flavor-of-jam, just start with figs. Figs turned into some strange concoctions, depending on the flavor of Jello dumped into the pot.

And sometimes, they left the peel on the cucumber, if it was not too large and tough (not quite to that fat, yellowed stage at which we kids stuck in several wooden matches or toothpicks for legs, and made piggies). After all, the "bought" apples still had THEIR peels.

Except for the redhots and cinnamon, it's a lot like the Lime Pickle recipe I still make to this day. But with smaller, tender cucumbers.

[petite tête de chou]

The 87-year-old mother of a friend of mine makes these pickles that I've never seen before and I was wondering if anyone else had or knew if there is a story behind them. She uses large cucumbers, peels them, then scoops the seeds out of the middle (leaving a ring shape). The secret ingredient is...red-hots candies. The pickles come out bright red, looking and tasting like those pickled apple rings you see at Thanksgiving. The woman lives in Ahoskie, in rural eastern NC. Here's her recipe, as written:

Red Ring Cucumber Pickles

2 gal. cucumber rings, peeled

2 cups pickling lime

8 1/2 cups cold water

Soak 24 hrs. & drain; wash and soak 3 hrs in cold water. Put in pot and cover with water, with 1 cup vinegar, 1 T alum, 1 oz. red food coloring. Simmer in this for 2 hrs., drain & throw away solution.

Heat the following and pour over cukes:

2 c. vinegar

2 c. water

10 c. sugar

8 cinnamon sticks

20 oz. red hot candy

Let stand over night; drain off & reheat two mornings; put back over cukes, keep covered; 3rd day, reheat together and pack in jars.

They are really quite good...if odd...Any thoughts?

←

What's pickling lime? I have pickling salt but I suspect that it isn't the same thing.

Do the pickles turn out red? That would be kinda fun!

edited to add...whoops! reading your post a bit closer I see that they DO turn out red. Dang. Never heard or seen of the like. Hm. A Valentines Day pickle , perhaps?

Edited August 26, 2005 by petite tête de chou (log)

[jayt90]

The 87-year-old mother of a friend of mine makes these pickles that I've never seen before and I was wondering if anyone else had or knew if there is a story behind them. She uses large cucumbers, peels them, then scoops the seeds out of the middle (leaving a ring shape). The secret ingredient is...red-hots candies. The pickles come out bright red, looking and tasting like those pickled apple rings you see at Thanksgiving. The woman lives in Ahoskie, in rural eastern NC. Here's her recipe, as written:

Red Ring Cucumber Pickles

2 gal. cucumber rings, peeled

2 cups pickling lime

8 1/2 cups cold water

Soak 24 hrs. & drain; wash and soak 3 hrs in cold water. Put in pot and cover with water, with 1 cup vinegar, 1 T alum, 1 oz. red food coloring. Simmer in this for 2 hrs., drain & throw away solution.

Heat the following and pour over cukes:

2 c. vinegar

2 c. water

10 c. sugar

8 cinnamon sticks

20 oz. red hot candy

Let stand over night; drain off & reheat two mornings; put back over cukes, keep covered; 3rd day, reheat together and pack in jars.

They are really quite good...if odd...Any thoughts?

←

What's pickling lime? I have pickling salt but I suspect that it isn't the same thing.

Do the pickles turn out red? That would be kinda fun!

edited to add...whoops! reading your post a bit closer I see that they DO turn out red. Dang. Never heard or seen of the like. Hm. A Valentines Day pickle , perhaps?

←

I think pickling lime is a calcium mixture that adds crispness. It falls to the bottom and doesn't get into the final product.

[petite tête de chou]

The 87-year-old mother of a friend of mine makes these pickles that I've never seen before and I was wondering if anyone else had or knew if there is a story behind them. She uses large cucumbers, peels them, then scoops the seeds out of the middle (leaving a ring shape). The secret ingredient is...red-hots candies. The pickles come out bright red, looking and tasting like those pickled apple rings you see at Thanksgiving. The woman lives in Ahoskie, in rural eastern NC. Here's her recipe, as written:

Red Ring Cucumber Pickles

2 gal. cucumber rings, peeled

2 cups pickling lime

8 1/2 cups cold water

Soak 24 hrs. & drain; wash and soak 3 hrs in cold water. Put in pot and cover with water, with 1 cup vinegar, 1 T alum, 1 oz. red food coloring. Simmer in this for 2 hrs., drain & throw away solution.

Heat the following and pour over cukes:

2 c. vinegar

2 c. water

10 c. sugar

8 cinnamon sticks

20 oz. red hot candy

Let stand over night; drain off & reheat two mornings; put back over cukes, keep covered; 3rd day, reheat together and pack in jars.

They are really quite good...if odd...Any thoughts?

←

What's pickling lime? I have pickling salt but I suspect that it isn't the same thing.

Do the pickles turn out red? That would be kinda fun!

edited to add...whoops! reading your post a bit closer I see that they DO turn out red. Dang. Never heard or seen of the like. Hm. A Valentines Day pickle , perhaps?

←

I think pickling lime is a calcium mixture that adds crispness. It falls to the bottom and doesn't get into the final product.

←

Cool. Now is that something that is included in commercial pickles, too?

[jayt90]

Yes. I wish I had my pickling rercipe book in front of me, but I think the commercial version of pickling lime is calcium chloride; it is a frequent ingredient on the labels I buy, though none are as good as home made.

I wonder of pickles in the barrel are still sold on Hester St., or Williamsburg?

[debbiemoose]

Yep.    Had many a one of these on a little doilied plate, along with creamcheese finger sandwiches and squirt-cheese in Bugles.    This was the garnish du jour of my youth, and everybody's Mama made them.  Except one enterprising lady who thought they'd be nicer colored GREEN---try dropping a few drops of McCormick green into a pot with redhots...neither the pickles nor the pot were ever the same again.

I'd forgotten these little gems.  They were of the era of Make-any-flavor-of-jam, just start with figs.    Figs turned into some strange concoctions, depending on the flavor of Jello dumped into the pot. 

And sometimes, they left the peel on the cucumber, if it was not too large and tough (not quite to that fat, yellowed stage at which we kids stuck in several wooden matches or toothpicks for legs, and made piggies).  After all, the "bought" apples still had THEIR peels.

Except for the redhots and cinnamon, it's a lot like the Lime Pickle recipe I still make to this day.  But with smaller, tender cucumbers.

←

Well, you had quite the experimental little neighborhood. Jello in jam?? I can only imagine the disgusting hue that the "green" version turned into.

[therese]

I've never seen or heard of these, and my grandmother (from rural Virginia) made lots of different sorts of pickles.

She did use red hot candies to make apple butter. The flavor's subtle once it's diluted out by all the apples, and the color's only a little bit different from the version without the candy, just a slightly warmer brown.

[jgm]

These have been a mainstay at potlucks in my area for years. And I love 'em! I prefer apple rings, but these are an acceptable substitute.