Zucchini Relish

Thanks to my friend Farmer Joe who sold me two HUGE zucchini for $4….I was able to make 15 – 2 cup jars of relish. Again, I did the recipe x6…so, 7 1/2 lbs. of diced zucchini. The tumeric in this makes it an absolutely beautiful colour. The version below is what I did…..

2 huge zucchini – 7 1/2 lbs. finely diced
12 medium onions, diced (I used sweet onions)
3 sweet red peppers – diced
3 sweet green peppers – diced
12 tablespoons of pickling salt
Mix all of this together in a non-reactive (not cast iron, aluminum or copper) and leave for about 1 hour. Drain, rinse and drain again and squeeze out as much water as possible.

6 cups of white sugar (I reduced it from 8 cups)
4 1/2 cups of cider vinegar
6 tablespoons each of dry mustard and celery seeds
3 teaspoons each of hot pepper flakes and tumeric
Mix the vegetables with the sugar, vinegar, mustard, celery seeds, hot pepper flakes and tumeric in a large stainless steel or enamel pot. Bring to a boil over high heat and boil gently, uncovered for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

6 tablespoons of water
12 teaspoons of cornstarch
Blend the water and the cornstarch and stir into the vegetables. Cook for about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens, stirring the whole time.

Ladle into hot jars (about 1 inch from the rim for head space). Boil lids and rims and place on jars – tighten lids and boil in a canner (jars covered with water) for 20 minutes. Remove and wait for the pop as your jars seal.

Written by Pam