PLEASING Pickles

Enterprising individuals who prepare dozens of jars of tomatoes and strawberry jam are easy to spot. You’ve probably seen them at the farmers market, arms full of baskets of cucumbers, smug in the satisfaction that they won’t go hungry if the world’s food supply ends. They’ll have pickles.

For years, I thought I should pickle too, but somehow I convinced myself I didn’t have the time, energy, or expertise — that is, until the year I learned 52 homestead skills. That year, I became a real homesteader and buckled down on pickling. I