University of Wisconsin - Extension

MADISON, Wis. — The flavors of summer captured in sweet cucumber pickle slices, beet pickles and cantaloupe pickles. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? But for people on a sugar-restricted diet, pickles and other foods may not be on the list of ‘approved foods.’ Thanks to efforts by The National Center for Home Food Preservation, located at the University of Georgia, recipes have been developed for No-Sugar Added Sweet Cucumber Pickle Slices, no-Sugar Added Pickled Beets, and No-Sugar Added Cantaloupe Pickles. Each of these recipes calls for Splenda¿, a relatively new artificial sweetener that is gaining in popularity.

Traditional quick-pack pickles are preserved by acid that is added to cucumbers, other vegetables, or fruit before processing. The added acid, usually vinegar, provides flavor and ensures safety of the finished product. Bread-and-butter slices, sweet gherkins, and pickle relish are all types of quick-pack pickles. Because acid is necessary for safety, sweet pickle recipes include sugar to balance the acid flavor. However, this added sugar can place pickles on the list of ‘unapproved’ foods for those on sugar-restricted diets.

Splenda is the trade name for an artificial sweetener known as sucralose. Sucralose is the only non-caloric sweetener made from sugar. A slight change in the chemistry of the sugar molecule produces a sweetener that has no calories, yet is 600 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar). Sucralose tastes like sugar, and, according to the Calorie Control Council (www.caloriecontrol.com) “It has a clean, quickly perceptible, sweet taste that does not leave an unpleasant aftertaste.”

Unlike other non-calorie sweeteners such as aspartame (NutraSweet¿) or saccharin (Sweet 'N Low¿), sucralose is exceptionally stable, retaining its sweetness over a wide range of temperature and storage conditions. It is thus uniquely suited for canning and other food processing applications where a no-calorie sweetener is desired.

The use of a no-calorie sweetener in the recipes below for sweet cucumber pickle slices, beet pickles, and cantaloupe pickles provides consumers wishing to limit their sugar intake with research-tested recipes that are safe and flavorful. As always, be sure to follow approved recipes when canning foods at home.

For more information and recipes, see Homemade Pickles and Relishes (B2267), part of The Wisconsin Safe Food Preservation Series by Barbara Ingham. Others in the series include Canning Fruits Safely (B0430), Making Jams, Jellies and Preserves (B2909), Freezing Fruits and Vegetables (B3278), Canning Vegetables Safely (B1159), Canning Salsa Safely (B3570), Tomatoes Tart and Tasty (B2605), and Canning Meat, Wild Game, Poultry and Fish Safely (B3345). These and other publications are available from your county UW-Extension office or from Cooperative Extension Publications (877-947-7827) and online at http://cecommerce.uwex.edu. There may be a fee for the publications, which are printable online.

To learn more, visit the web site of the National Center for Home Food Preservation at http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/. The following recipes are from this web site.

No-Sugar Added Sweet Cucumber Pickle Slices

31/2 pounds of pickling cucumbers

boiling water to cover sliced cucumbers

4 cups cider vinegar (5%)

3 cups Splenda¿*

1 tablespoon canning salt

1 cup water

1 tablespoon mustard seed

1 tablespoon whole allspice

1 tablespoon celery seed

4 one-inch cinnamon sticks

Yield: About 4 or 5 pint jars.

Procedure:

1. Wash and rinse pint canning jars; keep hot until ready to use. Prepare lids according to manufacturer's directions.

2. Wash cucumbers. Slice 1/16th-inch off the blossom ends and discard. Slice cucumbers into 1/4-inch thick slices. Pour boiling water over the cucumber slices and let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Drain off the hot water and pour cold water over the cucumbers. Let cold water run continuously over the cucumber slices, or change water frequently until cucumbers are cooled. Drain slices well.

3. Mix vinegar, 1 cup water, Splenda¿ and all spices in a 10-quart Dutch oven or stockpot. Bring to a boil. Add drained cucumber slices carefully to the boiling liquid. Return to a boil.

4. Place one cinnamon stick in each jar, if desired. With a slotted spoon, fill hot pickle slices into clean, hot pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Cover with boiling hot pickling brine, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; apply two-piece metal canning lids.

5. Process in a boiling water canner. Pint jars 10 minutes (for elevations 0-1,000 feet) or 15 minutes (for elevations 1,001-6,000 feet). Let cool, undisturbed, 12 to 24 hours and check for seals.

*Trade and brand names are used only for information. Reference to products is not intended to endorse them, or to exclude others that may be similar.

No Sugar Added Pickled Beets

7 lbs of 2- to 2-1/2-inch diameter beets

4 to 6 onions (2- to 2-1/2-inch diameter), if desired

6 cups vinegar (5%)

1-1/2 teaspoons canning or pickling salt

2 cups Splenda¿*

3 cups water

2 cinnamon sticks

12 whole cloves

Yield: About 8 pints

Procedure:

1. Wash and rinse pint canning jars; keep hot until ready to use. Prepare lids according to manufacturer's directions.

2. Trim off beet tops, leaving 1 inch of stem and roots to prevent bleeding of color. Wash thoroughly. Sort for size. Cover similar sizes together with boiling water and cook until tender (about 25 to 30 minutes). Caution: Drain and discard liquid.

3. Cool beets. Trim off roots and stems and slip off skins. Slice into 1/4-inch slices. Peel, wash and thinly slice onions.

4. Combine vinegar, salt, Splenda¿, and fresh water in large Dutch oven. Tie cinnamon sticks and cloves in cheesecloth bag and add to vinegar mixture. Bring to a boil. Add beets and onions. Simmer 5 minutes. Remove spice bag.

5. With a slotted spoon, fill hot beets and onion slices into clean, hot pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Cover with boiling hot vinegar solution, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; apply two-piece metal canning lids.

6. Process in a boiling water canner. Pint jars 30 minutes (for elevations 0-1,000 feet) or 35 minutes (for elevations 1,001-3,000 feet). Let cool, undisturbed, 12 to 24 hours and check for seals.

Variation

Pickled whole baby beets - Follow the directions above but use beets that are no more than 1- to 1-1/2 inches in diameter. Pack whole after cooking, trimming and peeling; do not slice.

No-Sugar Added Cantaloupe Pickles

6 pounds of one-inch cantaloupe cubes (about 3 medium under-ripe** cantaloupe)

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 one-inch cinnamon sticks

2 teaspoons ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground ginger

4-1/2 cups cider vinegar (5%)

2 cups water

3 cups Splenda¿*

**Select cantaloupe that are full size but almost fully green and firm to the touch in all areas including the stem area.

Yield: About 4 pint jars

Day One:

1. Wash cantaloupe and cut into halves; remove seeds. Cut into 1 inch slices and peel. Cut strips of flesh into 1 inch cubes. Weigh out 6 pounds of pieces and place in large glass bowl.

2. Place red pepper flakes, cinnamon sticks, cloves and ginger in a spice bag and tie the ends firmly. Combine vinegar and water in a 4-quart stockpot. Bring to a boil, then turn heat off. Add spice bag to the vinegar-water mixture, and let steep for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Pour hot vinegar solution and spice bag over melon pieces in the bowl. Cover with a food-grade plastic lid or wrap and let stand overnight in the refrigerator (about 18 hours).

Day Two

4. Wash and rinse pint canning jars; keep hot until ready to use. Prepare lids according to manufacturer's directions.

5. Carefully pour off vinegar solution into a large 8 to 10 quart saucepan and bring to a boil. Add Splenda¿; stir to dissolve. Add cantaloupe and bring back to a boil. Lower heat to simmer until cantaloupe pieces turn translucent; about 1 to 1-1/4 hours.

6. Remove cantaloupe pieces into a medium-sized stockpot, cover and set aside. Bring remaining liquid to a boil and boil an additional 5 minutes. Return cantaloupe to the liquid syrup, and bring back to a boil.

7. With a slotted spoon, fill hot cantaloupe pieces into clean, hot pint jars, leaving 1- inch headspace. Cover with boiling hot syrup, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened clean paper towel; apply two-piece metal canning lids.

8. Process in a boiling water canner. Pint jars 15 minutes (for elevations 0-1,000 feet) or 20 minutes (for elevations 1,001-6,000 feet). Let cool, undisturbed, 12-24 hours and check for seals.