For two gallons of pickles, place the cucumbers in salt and water for three days; then rinse in fresh water. One teacupful of whole white mustard; one handful of whole cloves; allspice and black pepper; a teacupful of broken cinnamon. Put all into a large thin bag and boil in one quart vinegar. Put two or three red pepper pods and a few sprigs of horseradish root among the cucumbers, in a keg or jar. Take sufficient vinegar to cover them and put into it one pound of brown sugar; let it scald and cool a little; then pour over the pickles; then the spices and vinegar, allowing the spices to remain on top. The spices and vinegar must be poured off and scalded for five mornings, and, when cool, poured over the pickles; the last day pour over a cup of molasses. Use good cider vinegar. If desired sweeter, sugar to vinegar when heating. Cucumbers used late in the season make better pickles than the earlier ones. Put cucumbers in salt water when freshly picked.
GREEN CUCUMBER PICKLE.
From MRS. CORA PAYNE JACKSON, of Kentucky, Lady Manager.
One gallon of cider vinegar; one pound of brown sugar; one tablespoon of allspice; one tablespoon of cloves; one tablespoon of black pepper; one tablespoon of mace; two tablespoons of root ginger; two tablespoons of celery; two tablespoons of white mustard; one handful of horseradish. After it begins to boil add cold cucumbers, well soaked, and boil until tender enough to pierce with a fork.
RIPE CUCUMBER PICKLE.
From MISS MARY ELLIOTT MCCANDLESS, of Pennsylvania, Lady Manager.
Slice twenty-five large cucumbers in pieces between one and two inches thick; lay in salt water two days; wash out the salt. Boil in alum water half an hour, alum size of a walnut (English); take out and boil in ginger water an hour; one ounce of ginger and water to cover. Make a syrup of five pounds of light brown sugar, three quarts of vinegar, one pint of water, two ounces of whole cloves, two ounces of stick cinnamon, half an ounce of whole allspice, half an ounce of mace (put spices in bags). Let all boil until a rich syrup, then put in the cucumbers and boil between one and two hours.
GOOSEBERRY CATSUP.
From MRS. AMEY M. STARKWEATHER, of Rhode Island, Superintendent State
Work and Lady Manager.
Nine pounds of gooseberries; add five pounds of sugar, one quart of vinegar, three tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, one and one-half each of allspice and cloves. The gooseberries should be nearly or quite ripe. Take off the blossoms, wash, and put them into a porcelain kettle, scald, then put through a colander, add the sugar and spices; boil fifteen minutes; then add the vinegar; bottle immediately before it cools. Almost any recipe for spiced gooseberries makes a good recipe when the gooseberries are put through a colander or coarse sieve, and the vinegar added, cooled in this way.