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Sure we can buy sweet relish at the grocery store anytime and we can usually get it free or really cheap with coupons! But who wouldn't love to have fresh, homemade pickle relish on hand whenever they need?!? I know I do! Grandmas Best Sweet Pickle Relish is such an easy recipe to make and is full of healthy veggies! Summer is the perfect time to give this recipe a try since these veggies are in season and that way you can make plenty to stock up for the fall and winter months!

I love it because I can plan my garden and get the veggies I know that I will use the most. There are so many things I love regular cucumbers for, not just pickle recipes. When cucumber season arrives I know I can make dill pickles and sweet pickles with all of those fresh cucumbers. I can even plant my herb garden and have fresh, organic herbs on hand like mustard seed, celery seed, fresh dill seed and even red bell peppers to add in.

Replace store-bought relish with this delicious homemade sweet pickle relish recipe and use it to top hot dogs, brats and burgers or mix it in with your chicken salad, tuna salad or potato salad to add a sweet, flavorful crunch! The green bell peppers and spices make the flavors really pop. And what a fabulous gift this would make! Add a pretty ribbon and tag and voila, you have a beautiful, delicious, homemade gift that anyone would love!

It is very important when taking on certain projects you have the right tools ready. You can use a knife to chop your veggies into small pieces, but homemade relish is going to be done a lot easier if you have a good food processor. It is a lot of chopped vegetables going in there and you will save a lot of time using these handy kitchen gadgets. I know there are so many recipes that tell you to use the processor or stand mixer and I think I can do it just as fast by hand, but relish and salsa are some recipes that you really just need to get out the food processor even if it seems like you won't need it. A few pints of relish may not sound like a lot but it will seem like it if you are trying to dice by hand.

And just because canning is involved does not mean you should let this recipe intimidate you. It takes some time but it's easier than you think. I promise! If you'd rather do a water bath canning method, you'll just add your relish-packed jars into a large stock pot of boiling water (using a jar lifter), making sure there's about 1 inch of water covering the jars, then cover with a lid. Allow to boil for about 10 minutes then lift the jars out and set on a towel to cool to room temperature. You will know when the lids are sealed because they will curve slightly in the center. And that's all there is to it! So you can use the canning method listed on the printable recipe or you can just follow the above instructions for a water bath.

Ingredients

• 1 quart chopped cucumbers
• 2 c. chopped onion
• 1 c. chopped green pepper
• 1 c. chopped red pepper
• 1/4 c. salt
• 3 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 tblsp. celery seed
• 1 tblsp. mustard seed
• 2 c. apple cider vinegar
• 4 pint glass ball canning jars, or 8 half pint glass jars

Instructions

1. Combine cucumbers, onion, and peppers in a large bowl. Sprinkle with the salt and cover with cold water. Let stand for 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 225. Place the glass jars on a baking sheet and bake for at least 20 minutes to sterilize.
3. Fill a small sauce pan with water and add jar lids and rings. Cook over low to medium heat until the water is 180 degrees.
4. Drain, rinse and drain the cucumber mix again making sure to get out as much water as possible.
5. Combine sugar, celery seed, mustard seed and vinegar in a large pot and bring to a boil. Add cucumber mix and simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Pack hot relish into the hot canning jars and leave 1/4 in. at the top. Remove air bubbles and secure the lids on the tops of the jars.

Cucumber season is a great time to get in out of the heat though and take a break. You may also find that you can grow a lot of jalapenos in the summer as well. Check back soon for our recipe for pickled jalapenos! The fall is a great time to work on new baking recipes and canning for pies. I love when the weather is cooler and I no longer want to spend all my days off at the lake. I could really find a canning project for all seasons, and with the high prices at the grocery store I really need to get ahead on that. We love old cook books and canning recipes like those in the Ball Blue Book Guide so we can learn something new.

Our goal is to grow more and more self sufficient and work on our homesteading projects, not just to save money but so we can show you all what we've learned along the way as well. We don't see the point in doing all this to only help ourselves. We have several Facebook groups for you all to get together and build community where we can all share recipes and hacks along the way for all sorts of projects that can benefit so many folks out there. Those are just a few of our goals for our family, what is something you are doing for your family or what to learn to do to either help save money or build a more sustainable life?

I hope you will give this great recipe a try! Who knows, you may find that you like canning or at least find that maybe it isn't as hard as you thought it would be, I know that's how I felt the first time I gave it a try! Let us know in the comments what is your favorite pickle relish recipe or any other canning recipe that you have tried. Are you team sweet relish or dill?

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