Make Your Own PicklesThis late spring I planted my first garden. The Portland rain has started so I have harvested all that I can. I still have green tomatoes on the vines and a dozen mini eggplants that dream to be a baba ganoush. It is clear that I will start my second garden much earlier next spring. One of my garden successes is my cucumber plant. Have any of you grown cucumbers? This one plant went crazy and took over my whole patio producing hundreds of cukumbers. . . and with delight, I let it. The last few months I was picking cucumbers every other day to keep them from growing into giant cucumber men, and after giving away as many as possible to everyone who came through my door, decided to give pickle making a try. I found a “blue ribbon” dill pickle recipe that seemed simple enough and had good reviews. I also added my own second version using rosemary, garlic and lemon. My first batch turned out great! Though technically you are suppose to wait about three months to open the jars, I was into mine after a week. Yum! So I made another batch a few weeks ago and today with full pickle confidence, I made my third and final batch for the year. Below in the tutorial you will find the recipe that I used. I made half with garlic and dill and the other half with rosemary, garlic and lemon. Both are delicious. If you have yet to taste a picked lemon, I challenge you to taste. It is surprisingly good. I also designed and printed some pickle jar labels in both standard and wide-mouth so I can gift a jar or two to my pickle loving friends. You can find this printable at the end of the post and you can download a full set of editable canning labels from this post. I just used full sheet label paper and trimmed the circles with scissors. Go for it! Even if you have to buy your cucumbers, you will love this easy recipe. There is no pickle better than a homemade one. Enjoy! ~ Lia

DIY Pickles Printable LabelsHomemade Pickles and Printable LabelsPickleTutorial