Zee beets! Fini! Oila! Finally!

Ah, God, finally. It was a labor of love, but I think it took more energy worrying about them while I was sick than it did for either round of actual canning. Today I went at it slowly and methodically, enjoying the textures and colors. Not a lot in the way of scent, barring the pickling liquid. Enjoy.

My babies. I couldn't be more proud.

A beet, the skin falling off since I'd already boiled it. They were very easy to peel.

The liquid, a fragrant mix of vinegar, water, sugar, and spices. Bring to a boil, then cool.

A beet, halved, then sliced, then cut down the middle again. Trying to keep slices as uniform as possible.


The first beet goes into the first jar. It's a moment.

Now I'm really cooking, doing them in batches; I create a beetscape. They are very pretty, aren't they, on the blue cutting board? These have been peeled, and the roots and tops cut off. They're ready for slicing.

But I got all set up this afternoon, and everything went quite well. I maintained all sterile protocol and technique, the beets did not seem mushy -- well, a couple of them did but I rejected them immediately and chose only the firm ones.

I did one jar of just tiny ones, uncut, except for the tops and roots cut off. I think they're pretty.

I'm not going to do a total blow-by-blow, since I totally used the instructions at a guy named Paul Noll's blog. (The link is underneath all the pictures. Ya, I want you to look at my photos and my pretty beets before you go over there!) My mom could not remember the recipe, and this one had lots of helpful pictures. So.

Tomorrow I will taste them. Tonight, though, they must cool. I will let you know. Here's the link to instructions: http://www.paulnoll.com/Oregon/Canning/canning-pickled-beets.html