Canning is fun to do with friends.
Carrots are at their sweetest in the fall, especially if you pick them after a light frost. The sugars concentrate and leave the carrots not only good for eating as a vegetable but also as a pickle. Prepare your pickles according to your favorite recipe, taking the time to peel the carrots or at least to give them a good scrubbing. Keep everything scrupulously clean and sterile while you prepare to can your carrot pickles.
Instructions
1. Wash your canning jars with hot soapy water and rinse. Use a bottle brush if necessary to clean out the bottom of the jars. Submerse the jars in a large stockpot of simmering water to sterilize them. Use new lids and clean bands.
2. Make your brine and prepare the carrots according to your recipe. Bring the brine up to a boil and keep it simmering as you fill the jars.
3. Remove one jar from the hot water using tongs and carefully pour out the water. Place the hot jar on a plate. Fill the jar with the carrots and ladle the brine over them to within 1/2 inch of the top. Slide a butter knife down the sides of the jar, pressing inward against the carrots to release any trapped air.
4. Wipe the rim of the jar with a corner of a kitchen towel dipped in the simmering water. Set the new lid on and hold it in place with the clean band. Do not tighten the band, since you want the air in the jar to escape. Lower the jar into the stock pot of hot water with tongs.
5. Fill each of the jars quickly, place them in the pot, and then set the timer for 15 minutes.
6. Turn off the heat. Remove the jars from the boiling water with tongs. Place them on a kitchen towel and use another towel to tighten the band. Once you have tightened all the jars, leave them in a draft-free area to cool. Listen for the pop of the lid as the vacuum builds in the jar, sealing the pickled carrots.
7. Press on the top of the lids to check if they bounce back. Refrigerate any that do and consume within a week or two. Let the pickled carrots sit for a week or more before trying them to let the brine work through the carrot.
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