To Jodi, with love from Kendra

So, I have it on good authority that Jodi likes to cook things, too. Sadly, she doesn't go in for the whole vegetarian scene-oh well. But, I also have heard that she enjoys a good pickle-especially the fabled CLAUSSENS. I've recently made pickles on my own (I was actually Skyping with her while I made them). I won't lie, they're not as good as actual Claussens, Matty says, "they're decent", and I agree. The best part is that they're cruchy like a Claussen. But, I'll give you the recipe. I think I like the look of them in my fridge next to the Mason Jars of Gazpacho (recipe to come in a later edition).

Quick Fresh-Pack Dill Pickles

• 8 lbs. of 3- to 5-inch pickling cucumbers
• 2 gals. water
• 1 1/4 cups canning or pickling salt
• 1 1/2 qts. vinegar (5 percent acidity)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 qts. water
• 2 Tbsp. whole mixed pickling spice
• about 3 Tbsp. whole mustard seed (1 tsp. per pint jar)
• about 14 heads of fresh dill (1-1/2 tsp. per pint jar) or 4-1/2 Tbsp. dill seed (1-1/2 tsp. per pint jar)

Yield: 7 to 9 pints
Procedure: Wash cucumbers. Cut 1/16-inch slice off blossom end and discard, but leave 1/4 inch of stem attached. Dissolve 3/4 cup salt in 2 gallons of water. Pour over cucumbers and let stand 12 hours. Drain. Combine vinegar, 1/2 cup salt, sugar, and 2 quarts water. Add mixed pickling spices tied in a clean, white cloth. Heat to boiling. Fill jars with cucumbers. Add 1 tsp. mustard seed and 1-1/2 heads fresh dill per pint. Cover with boiling pickling solution, leaving a 1/2-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process as below or use the low-temperature pasteurization treatment described previously.