For my final canning project of this holidaze season, I set about making what I call Ciao! Picollo, which is a mélange of pickled cauliflower, cabbage, bell peppers, jalapeños, onion, and garlic.
It also just so happens to be pretty darned spiffy on corn chips, which is pretty handy, because this recipe will make at least 14 half pints, and mebbe a wee, tiny bit more.
Note: I have been canning a lot this month, so I totally cheated and raided the prepped
and chopped case at my local market’s produce section.
INGREDIENTS
•4-1/2 cups white vinegar
•2-1/4 cups sugar
•1-1/4 cup water
•3 tsp pickling salt
•1-1/8 tsp turmeric
•3 cups chopped jalapeño
•3 cups diced pepper
•4 cups diced cauliflower
•4 cups chopped cabbage
•2 cups diced carrot
•2 cups diced celery
•2 cups onion, diced
•3 tbsp minced fresh garlic
Note: don’t fret too much if even your largest pot is looking to be filled to over flowing; all those veggies will cook down as you go.
Combine all of the ingredients in a large pot and cook, stirring often, over medium low heat for 45 minutes.
Fill another large pot with water and one cup of white vinegar and bring to a boil. The vinegar will insure that, even if your water is somewhat hard, the jars will come out sparkling clean.
Note: I use my dishwasher’s “sanitize” cycle to sterilize my canning jars, but you can just boil them in the water bath for ten minutes before draining and filling.
Ladle the hot Ciao! Picollo into you prepared canning jars and, using a wooden skewer, poke each jar to get rid of any air pockets.
Cover and process for 15 minutes.
Remove to a rack to cool, listening for the “pop!” of each lid sealing.
To check the seal, press your fingertip to the center of each lid. If the center is down (or stays down), you jar is properly sealed. If the center pops back up, try reprocessing.