I'm envious, I'm still watching those first little cucumbers in my garden, certainly no pickles for a couple of weeks. Now I want to see more pictures when they're done! Annie

I've never had good luck with vinegar pickles. Don't know why. Did everything right, fresh cukes, changed to distilled water, cut the blossom ends . They were always soft. I had a neighbor who made the best dills...he just got everything hot, filled his jars and screwed the lids on. His always sealed. Mine, not so much. I tried fermenting...lots of slimy pickles with yuck growing on top. Then I tried Deanna/dgkritch's dills with just a bit of vinegar, which along with some good fermentation lids made pickles that surprised us all. I do two 1/2 gallon jars and store them in the fridge. * Exported from MasterCook * Fermented Dill Pickles - A Refrigerated Clausen Type Recipe By : dgkritch, Cooking Forum Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Ferment Preserving Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 1 Jar -- (1 Gallon ) Pickling Cucumbers 12 Fresh Dill Flower heads -- or 2 Tbsp Dried dill weed and 2 Tbsp. Dried dill seed 10 Cloves Garlic -- (10 to 12) 6 Peppercorns -- (6 to 8) 1/4 Cup Vinegar 1/2 Cup Salt 1 1/2 Quarts Water In 1 gallon jar add pickling cucumbers. Rinse but do not wash the cucumbers. Add Dill flower heads or dried dill weed and seed, garlic, peppercorns, and vinegar. Dissolve salt in water and add to jar. Fill jar the remaining way with water. Add weight to keep cucumbers under brine. Fermentation sequence: 1. Clear brine no cloudiness for 1 to 3 days 2. Cloudy brine with gas formation, 2-3 days 3. Cloudy brine no gas formation, 5 to 6 days Pickles ready to eat after 10-11 days. Refrigerate pickles if you do not want to process them. To process the pickles: Fill clean, sterilized quart jars with pickles to within 1/2 inch of the top. Wipe, seal, and process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes. Remove and place on towel in a draft free area. Let jars stand for 12 hours. Label and date. Store in a dark, cool area.

Annie, here it is. I changed the name of the recipe to Pork Roast Divine, because it is! It's written for the pressure cooker (if you have one of those), but could easily be made traditionally. You know what to do! The gravy is incredible. I always thin it with chicken stock before adding the home-made noodles. It used to be one of my Dad's favorite dishes. Pork Roast Divine Recipe written for the pressure cooker 3 lbs. pork loin (boneless) 3 Tablespoons olive oil (for searing pork loin) 2 cups leeks, chopped 1 onion, minced 1 clove minced garlic 3 Tablespoons olive oil (for cooking leeks, onions and garlic) 1/2 teaspoon sage 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard 1/2 teaspoon thyme 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons paprika 1 teaspoon pepper 2 cups water 1 (15 ounces) can chicken broth or 2 cups homemade chicken broth Sear the pork roast until nicely browned on all sides. Set aside to cool. Pour olive oil into the pan and cook the leeks, minced onion and garlic until done, (3-5 minutes). Add 2 cups of water and the chicken broth to the pot to heat. Rub the roast with the spice mixture (sage, mustard, salt, paprika, thyme & pepper). Put the roast into the liquid in the pressure cooker and bring to pressure. Cook the roast for 45 minutes. Add vegetables if desired and cook 15 minutes longer.

Glad they got there in time Ann, I was starting to worry! The weather out on the West coast has really slowed down delivery times.....talk about a close call! Moe, enjoy and Matt, you share with your Mom, although I know she isn't much of a pickle person so it won't be a huge hardship! ! Just putting , my Tourtieres in the oven. Chris and Amity are hosting Christmas Eve this year but Chris asked that I bring the Tourtiere and they would do the rest! Merry Christmas everyone!