Sweet & Hot Cuke Relish

 This started with a recipe for Classic hot dog relish BUT there was not enough syrup to cover the relish once they were packed into the jars.  SO, what to do?  Well, I had a lot of syrup leftover from making candied jalapeños (Cowboy candy) and thought I would add it to this recipe.  Removed all the jar lids and poured the contents into the canning pot and added 2 cups of syrup from the first paragraph of the directions for  candied jalapeños recipe.

Here is the original recipe- don’t forget to follow the link to the additional syrup.

To make 7 x 250ml jars

Ingredients

4 cups    finely chopped cucumbers

2 lrg        green bell peppers

2 lrg         onions, peeled and finely chopped

2 tbsp       Kosher salt

1 cup        Cider vinegar

1/2 tsp       Celery seed

1/2 tsp.     Ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp.     Ground black pepper

1/2 cup.    Honey

Directions

Wash the cucumbers.  Slice off the stem ends, cut in half lengthwise and scoop our the seeds if they are large,  Finely chop the cucumbers- they should be minces, not puréed.

Slice of the stem of the green peppers. Cut them in half lengthwise, remove any white pith and seeds then finely chop.  Do the same for the onions.  

Combine the cucumbers, sweet peppers and onions in a large bowl.  Add the salt and mix well.  Cover the bowl and leave in the refrigerator overnight for 8 to 12 hours.  Put the vegetables in a finely meshed sieve and drain for a few minutes.  Rinse them with cold water and drain again for a few minutes.  

In a large pot, add the cider vinegar, the spices and honey and two cups of jalapeño syrup (see note above) - bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.  Stir to dissolve the honey.  Once it is boiling, add the vegetables and bring back to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

Spoon relish into clean, hot canning jars by using a slotted spoon to place the vegetable mixture into the jars to within 1/2 inch of the rim- top up with the hot syrup.  Remove air bubbles if there are any.

Wipe the rims, screw on the two-piece lids and place in the steam canner for 10 minutes (start timing when it reached the proper steam temperature.  After 10 minutes, remove the canner lid carefully and let the jars sit for about 10 minutes.

Wait at least one week before serving to allow the flavours to develop.