Yesterday I confessed my new obsession with cucumbers and shared a healthy version of refrigerator pickles using apple cider vinegar and honey.  You can find that recipe here.  I also shared that I found another refrigerator pickle recipe that was so unique I just had to try it. 

Instead of the traditional vinegar and sugar, the base of this recipe is lemon juice and honey.  Then you add a variety of spices including turmeric and cloves. 

I am no pickle connoisseur, but I would say that these pickles resemble bread and butter pickles with an interesting kick from the clove.  I did a quick search for bread and butter pickle recipes and found that turmeric is pretty standard, cloves appear occasionally and lemon and honey are rare.

I served both pickle recipes to an expert my pregnant sister in law.  She had not had refrigerator pickles before today.  She enjoyed the Honey Sweetened Pickles and could not taste the honey.  When she tried the Honey Lemon Pickles she agreed that they tasted similar to bread and butter pickles with a kick.  She could not identify the kick as cloves.

I have to admit, I don’t like to eat these pickles straight from the jar.  Maybe this is because I don’t really like bread and butter pickles.  But I added them to my hamburger last night and my turkey sandwich today.  I really, really liked what they added to my sandwiches.

Give ’em a try and let me know what you think!

Honey Lemon Refrigerator Pickles

This makes 3 pints so I halved the recipe.

Ingredients:

• 6 cups Cucumbers, sliced
• 2 cups Onions, sliced
• 3/4 cup Honey
• 1 cup Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp Kelp Powder (Don’t have kelp?  You could try 1/4 tsp salt.)
• 1/2 tsp Mustard Seed
• 1/2 tsp Celery Seed
• 1/2 tsp Ground Turmeric
• 1/2 tsp Ground Cloves

Directions:

1. Put cucumbers and onions in a large glass bowl.  Add remaining ingredients to a saucepan.  Bring to a boil and cook and stir until honey is dissolved.
2. Pour the liquid over the vegetables and stir well.  Let the cucumbers cool while keeping them submerged.
3. Transfer pickles to jars and refrigerate at least 24 hours.
4. Store in refrigerator.

This recipe came from From Asparagus to Zucchini.

I have had issues with cucumbers recently.  It’s strange because I used to dislike them but lately I can’t get enough.  My body must be deficient in cucumber vitamins.  🙂  When I saw a box of organic cucumbers for sale at the farmer’s market I grabbed it.  Don’t worry, I paid for it first.

What’s a girl to do with a box of cucumbers but make pickles.  All of the refrigerator pickle recipes I had called for white sugar.  I haven’t had white sugar in the kitchen for some time.  I wondered, could I use sucanat?  I didn’t think that would work since it has a maple like flavor.  I was also afraid it would make the pickle juice an unappetizing brown color.

Then I wondered if I could use honey.  I did some searching online and found two recipes.  The first one seemed to be a simple and classic refrigerator pickle recipe with a few healthy adaptations.  The second recipe was like nothing I had seen before.  Pickles in lemon juice instead of vinegar.  Cloves, really?

I couldn’t help myself.  I tried them both. 

This honey sweetened refrigerator pickle recipe is a great basic recipe with the traditional taste you expect from refridgerator pickles.  There is a nice balance of salty, sweet and sour.  Next time I make them I might throw in some garlic or dill for fun.

Honey Sweetened Refrigerator Pickles

Ingredients:

• 3 Large Cucumbers, sliced thin
• 1 Medium Onion, sliced thin
• 2 tsp Sea Salt
• 1 tsp Celery Seed
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup Honey
• 1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

Directions:

1. Gently mix cucumbers, onion, salt and celery seed in a large bowl.
2. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.  (I may or may not have eaten half the bowl of salted cukes before the hour was up.)
3. Stir honey and vinegar in a small bowl until honey is dissolved.  Pour over cucumber mixture.
4. Mix well.  Cover and refrigerate 24 hours.
5. Pickles will keep 3 weeks or more in the refrigerator.

And the second recipe?  You can find it here.

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