Roberta Hatch’s Sweet Pickles recipe

I had the most remarkable mother-in-law. Roberta Hatch was a true do-it-yourself pioneer-stock woman. I'm not sure there was anything she couldn't do or make herself. She taught me so much about canning, sewing, bread making, preserving, and gardening that became the basis for all of my own do-it-myself philosophy.

She also taught me what it was like to be a wonderful mother-in-law. She could easily have been awful to me - I was from a culture that was totally foreign to her. She had warned her son that if he married me none of our children would look like the rest of the Hatch kids. (She was right - they grew up to be incredibly good-looking people.) After I married her son, she took me in and treated me as her own daughter. I grew to dearly love that woman. She passed away many years ago, but I still miss her.

I'm not sure that any of her own children made this recipe. As far as I know, I was the only one that carried on the tradition. So, here it is, made public. Perhaps some of you will make this a tradition in your own families. I hope you come to love it as much as I do.

Roberta Hatch’s Sweet Pickles

24 cucumbers – dill size
Wash cucumbers and put in salt brine (add enough salt to water to easily float an egg). Cover with a plate. Let stand two weeks; wash thoroughly in cold water. Cut off both ends, discard, and cut in ¾ “ round slices. Soak overnight in cold water to which a rounded tablespoon of alum has been added. The next day, wash the cukes in cold water.

Syrup
1 qt vinegar
2 qt sugar
Spice bag made up of 1 T cloves and 2 sticks cinnamon.
Combine vinegar, sugar and spice bag in a 4-quart pan. Boil vigorously; remove from heat and pour over cucumbers. Allow to sit in a cool place until next day. Pour off liquid, heat to boiling, pour over cucumbers; allow to sit in a cool place until next day. Repeat 3 more mornings. On the final morning pack cucumbers in hot sterilized quart bottles. Pour boiling syrup over cucumbers in jars. Seal jars and process in hot water bath for 10 minutes.