I really wanted to make a batch of these nicely spiced pickles to bring to my sister’s house for Thanksgiving, but, asparagus was kinda pricey and the warehouse-sized mega market I happened to be shopping at was out of jalapeños!
!?!
How does this even happen? Still, I soldiered through, buying frozen asparagus spears and canned sliced jalapeños and you know what?
They still turned out just fine!
Zippy, with just a touch of heat and, as an added bonus, because I had to trim the spears a bit to fit in the pint jars I was using, it just so happens that those trimmed ends make for one fine jar o’ pickles, too!
So, two bags of frozen asparagus spears yielded me three pint jars of spears pickles and one pint jar of (just as tasty) end trimmings pickles.
INGREDIENTS
•2 bags frozen asparagus spears, thawed
•1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, per jar
•1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper, per jar
•1/2 tsp mustard seeds, per jar
•1/2 tsp dill seed, per jar
•1 whole garlic clove, per jar
•2 slices fresh jalapeño, per jar
•5 cups white vinegar
•5 cups water
•1/2 cup pickling salt
Trim the spears to fit in pint canning jars, placing the spears in three and the ends in a fourth jar. Or, if you want to share the wealth, mix the trimmed ends in with the spears to make four combo jars.
Add the seasonings to each jar, then, in a pot over medium heat, bring the water, vinegar, and canning salt to a boil, stirring until the salt has dissolved.
Pour the vinegar mixture over the asparagus in the jars, cover, and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
Nice pickles!