Fermenting

      Today I finally got to use my fermenting crock to make some pickles!  I got the crock last year, right after cucumber season was over, so this is my first batch of crock pickles. I actually got the crock after fermenting some cucumbers in a mason jar last year. I had always made pickles with vinegar, but after one taste of my fermented pickles, I knew this was the only way for me. The flavor is so much more intense, and they're sour without being sharp.
     I bought the crock so that I could make more at once, and make it easier. (No more having to "burp" the jars or skim off scum.) I have since made a couple of batches of sauerkraut, and they were wonderful! Fermenting is so easy, and the result is like nothing you can buy in a store.

     For the pickles, I used dill, garlic, and red pepper flakes to season them. Garlic and dill go together beautifully. The grape leaves are to keep the pickles crunchy. Like a natural pickle crisp.

     I picked small cucumbers because I was pickling them whole. If the cucumbers were bigger, I would slice them.

     I layered the cucumbers and the seasoning until the crock was nearly full, then put the grape leaves on top. I had just enough room for the weights. Now I wait!

      I leave the crock on my table while it's fermenting because I don't have anywhere else to put it. You're suppose to put it somewhere cool, but not refrigerator cold, after three days. In the summer, everywhere in my house is warm. Some rooms more so than others, but there is nowhere cool. It was fine for the kraut, so I think it will be fine for the pickles too.