Delicious Dill Pickles

Ingredients

• 10 lb pickling cucumbers (4 inch)
• 15 cups water*
• 7 cups apple cider vinegar*
• 7/8 cup pickling salt*
• 6 - 16 cloves garlic
• Red pepper flakes, optional*
• 12 - 16 heads fresh dill*

Directions

1. Wash cucumbers thoroughly. Trim 1/8 inch off stem and blossom ends. Place cucumbers in ice water and refrigerate overnight; drain. To prepare pickling liquid, combine water, vinegar and salt in a nonreactive Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve salt. In each hot sterilized jar, place 1 - 2 cloves garlic, 1/4 tsp pepper flakes and 1 head dill. Pack cucumbers into jars and place a second head of dill on top. Pour boiling pickling liquid over cucumbers, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles with a narrow rubber spatula or plastic knife. Add additional pickling liquid, if required, to maintain headspace. Wipe jar rims thoroughly with a clean damp cloth. Seal and process for 20 minutes in a boiling water bath. For altitudes higher than 3000 ft (914 m), add 5 minutes to processing time.