Pickled Beets....

We love our beets!  Even the girls love them which a lot of people think is weird, but they are healthy and that is all that matters!

After pulling your beets up from the ground trim the stems, but make sure to leave the teeny tiny green leaf like the one in the picture below.  If you cut that leaf off, your beets will start to bleed and will loose their deep rich red color.

 Wash them and place in boiling water until fork tender...

 Once they are tender, remove them into ice cold water...

 Cut the top part off and peel them while they are still slightly warm...

 Then either slice them or cube them.
We prefer ours sliced!

 You will need approximately 2 quarts (or 8 cups) of sliced (or cubed) beets...

 Place beets in the vinegar and sugar mixture.  Add mustard seed and cloves and bring to a boil.

 Place rings and lids in warm water to sterilize them...

 Ladle the mixture into the jars leaving 1/4 inch head space...

Wipe the rims of the jars with a CLEAN rag to remove any juice, etc. that may prevent the lids from sealing...

 Adjust the rings and lids...

 Place in hot water bath and make sure there is at least a half inch of water covering the lids...

 Boil for 30 minutes...

 Remove from hot water bath and set for 24 hours...

 Make sure all the jars are sealed.  Once they are cool and sealed you can remove the rings and label the jars...

Pickled Beets

2 quarts (8 cups) sliced or cubed beets

4 c. sugar

4 c. vinegar

1 T. cloves

1 T. mustard seed

Cook beets until tender.  Peel while slightly warm.

Cook sugar and vinegar with beets and bring to a boil.  Add cloves and mustard seed.

Ladle into jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.

Adjust rings and caps.

Place in boiling hot water bath for 30 minutes.

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