I love pickles. Not the rubbery ones you buy room temperature from the grocery shelf, the cold, crunchy ones that snap when you bite into them.

One day, I had a craving for a cold crunchy treat and when I went to the fridge for my jar of pickles, it was gone. Now I was in a pickle!  Fortunately, I had several cucumbers in the crisper, so an hour later, I had another fresh jar of pickles in the fridge!

You can use this recipe for just about any vegetable, especially cucumbers, bell peppers, onions, cauliflower and carrots. When making pickles, look for the smaller cucumbers, grown specifically for pickling.  They’re in the same family as a cucumber, just a different variety.  But if you can’t find them, regular cucumbers will work just as well.  And if you feel like making your brine a little spicy, add a couple dashes of red pepper flakes or crushed peppercorns to the mix.

Ingredients:
2 cucumbers sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 cups white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 teaspoons kosher salt

Directions:
1) Combine the vinegar, salt and sugar in a large glass measuring cup and stir until the salt and sugar have dissolved.

2) Place the sliced cucumbers in a tall glass jar and pour the liquid into the jar, covering the cucumbers.

3) Cover the jar with a tight fitting lid and place the jar in the refrigerator.

4) That’s it! An hour later, you’ll have fresh pickles!