You are right about those cookbooks, absolutely any recipe you could ever need.
I looked in my Grandmother's recipes, figuring she had a recipe, but I didn't find one. I did come across this one at the BHG website, I don't know if it's the same one from their cookbooks or not.
If that one doesn't sound right, I have another resource I can call and check with.

HTH,
Michelle

Here is a link that might be useful: Bread and Butter Pickles

Barbara,

This one might be close, but it doesn't have onions in it. Other than that, it seems like it might be what you're looking for. It is from the book "The Joy of Pickling", and the author calls it

"Bread and Butter Pickles, My Way"

About 3 1/2 lbs. 3" to 5" pickling cucumbers
1/4 cup pickling salt
4 teaspoons whole yellow mustard seeds
1 teaspoon whole celery seeds
1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
2 cups cider vinegar
2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground tumeric

1. Slice the cucumbers 3/16" thick, discarding both ends. You should have 2 quarts of sliced cucumbers. In a large bowl, toss the cucumber slices with the salt. Top the cucumbers with ice cubes from two ice trays. Let the cucumbers stand at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours.

2. Drain the cucumbers well. Toss them with the mustard seeds, celery seeds, and hot pepper flakes. Pack the cucumbers into 4 pint mason jars.

3. In a saucepan, bring the vinegar, water, sugar and tumeric to a boil. Pour the hot liquid over the cucumber slices, leaving 1/2" headspace. Close the jars with the 3-piece lids. In a boiling water bath, process the jars for 10 minutes.

Now, here's the one that most closely matches the recipe you're looking for. It also is from "The Joy of Pickling" and is called "Old Fashioned Bread and Butters". It also is the recipe that, when eaten, reminds me almost exactly of my grandmother's bread and butter pickles.

6 lbs. 4 to 5" pickling cucumbers
2 lbs. small onions, sliced into thin rounds
1/2 cup pickling salt
4 1/2 cups cider vinegar
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons ground tumeric
2 teaspoons whole celery seeds
2 tablespoons whole yellow mustard seeds

1. Slice the cucumbers crosswise 3/16" thick, discarding both ends. In a large bowl, toss the cucumbers and onions with the salt. Empty 2 trays of ice cubes over the vegetables and let them stand at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours.

2. Drain the vegetables. In a large nonreactive pot, bring the remaining ingredients to a boil. Add the vegetables and slowly return the contents to a boil. Add the vegetables and slowly return the contents to a boil. With a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to pint mason jars, leaving 1/2" headspace. Divide the liquid evenly among the jars. Close the jars with the two-piece caps. In a boiling-water bath, process the jars for 10 minutes.

3. Store the cooled jars in a cool, dry, dark place for at least one month before eating the pickles. After opening a jar, store it in the refrigerator.

If neither one of these is "it", let me know and I'll look in some of my other cookbooks.

Dawn

My mom's recipe is wonderful - no shame in saying that!!

Katie and I have canned 23 pint jars already and would gladly do more. A few notes...I do not finish with a hot water bath - bring the mixture to a good boil and work quickly getting them in the jars and sealed and they are just fine. I think that cooking these pickles longer makes them flaccid. I like my pickles crisp and flavorful!!

There are subtle differences (compared to the BHG recipe), so I'll just give it as I have it:

4 qts. sliced unpared cucumbers
6 med. onions, sliced
1 green pepper, cut in strips
1 red pepper, cut in strips
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 cup pickling salt

5 cups sugar
3 cups white vinegar
2 Tbsp. mustard seed
1/4 tsp. cloves
1 1/2 tsp. celery seed
1 1/2 tsp. turmeric

Combine vegetables and salt. Cover with ice (cubes or crushed) and mix thoroughly. Let stand for 3 hours, stirring and adding ice occasionally. Drain well, removing all remaining ice.
Combine remaining ingredients and pour over vegetables. Bring just to boiling, stirring carefully.
Seal at once in hot sterilized jars.
Best when "seasoned" for a couple of weeks; best when chilled. Makes 8 pints.

Michelle...
That recipe looks SO good. Yes, it might be the original one from the old Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. I've never tried adding garlic to mine, but who knows, it might add a little extra something.
The picture looked good and syrupy, just the way I like them.

Dawn
This looks to be like a good recipe for a small batch. I guess you could easily double it for a large one. It looks really close to my old recipe. I think I'll have to get that "Joy of Pickling" cookbook.
There is just nothing like a good Ole Fashioned Bread and Butter pickle for almost any occasion.

Shankins...
Thank you and your mom for the great recipe. Although I have never added green or red pepper to my B&B pickles, this may be a first time. It looks to be a really sweet recipe with lots of sugar, and I like that small "touch" of cloves to the mix. I can see where a good hot syrup with all that sugar and vinegar would tend to seal the jars SAFELY with no extra cooking to prevent spoilage.

Thanks, and thanks again to all of you! You guys are the BEST!

Barbara

I have my father-in-laws recipe for Bread and Butter Pickles, but he said I don't need to put them in a 10 minute bath. What are your thoughts on that? I thought that an important necessary step.
Thanks for your advice!
Biggy

FROM THE 1968 BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS NEW COOKBOOK:

Crisp Pickle Slices
(bread and butter type)

4 qts sliced unpared medium cucumbers
6 med white onions, thinly sliced (6 cups)
2 green peppers, sliced (1-2/3 cups)
3 cloves garlic
1/3 cup granulated pickling salt
5 cups sugar
3 cups cider vinegar
1-1/2 tsp turmeric
1-1/2 tsp celery seed
2 T mustard seed

Combine cucumber, onion, green pepper, and whole garlic cloves. Add salt; cover with cracked ice; mix thoroughly. Let stand 3 hours; drain well. Remove garlic. Combine remaining ingredients; pour over cucumber mixture. Bring to boil.

Fill hot jars to 1/2 inch from top; adjust lids. Process in boiling water bath for 5 minutes (start timing when water returns to boiling). Makes 8 pints.

And Barbara, if you could just see how well loved and used this cookbook is!!

Marcy

Biggy,

I'd go ask this question at Garden Web's Harvest Forum or Google and go to the website of the National Home Food Preservation Center to get the definitive answer from the experts.

As far as I know, the current safety recommendations are that ALL pickled products must be processed in a boiling water bath, and the time would vary depending on the size of your jars and your altitude. To process pickles without that Boiling Water Bath leaves your pickles and anyone who heat them at risk of contracting a food-related illness like listeria or botulism, both of which can be deadly. I would never skip the BWB step. Never.

The reason that processing jars of canned foods in a Boiling Water Bath is so very important is that such heat processing interrups the normal spoilage and decaying cycle of food via the heating of the food contained in the canning jars capped with the 2-piece lids. When you process the jars, the heat is applied at a specific temperature and held at that specific temperature for a specific amount of time which destroys all potentially harmful microorganisms. At the same time, the heat processing drives the air from the jars. As the jars cool down, the lid seals to the jar to prevent air or harmful microorganisms from entering the jar. This ensures your food quality remains high and, more importantly, that the food remains safe to eat as long as it is stored properly.

Skipping the BWB step is like playing Russian roulette with the food you can and the people who eat it. A lot of people will argue that their family has always canned 'this' or 'that' without either BWB processing or pressure canner processing and no one's ever become ill or died. That may be true, but we know more about food safety now than we knew in the past and there is no need to risk someone's life for the sake of tradition when we now know the best and safest methods for home food preservation.

Don't take my word for it though. Click on the link below to ask the real experts.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Harvest Forum

I LOVE this recipe: It is a GREAT way to use green tomatoes if you have to pull any plants. I cut it in half and did not can (served fresh). Tastes like very fresh, EXTREMELY delcious B&B pickles.

http://macandcheesereview.blogspot.com/2006/11/green-tomato-pickle.html

This won't be your Mom's recipe but it is delicious. I promise.

Jo