Lady Ross Mustard Pickle Relish

Lady Ross Mustard Pickle Relish is a recipe that was handed down to me by my mother-in-law, Helen (Humphrey) Dunlop. Her family originated in Newfoundland and apparently Lady Ross lived there for awhile. Mustard pickle is also known a Piccalilli and according to Wikipedia, it is a British interpretation of South Asian pickles, a relish of chopped pickled vegetables and spices.

Helen would make this as a pickle, rather than a relish, but I have modified it to be a relish because it can be used in many more ways.

It is enjoyable on burgers or hot dogs or as a spread with cooked ham or on sandwiches. It has a unique sweet and sour flavour.

Traditionally, she would thicken it with flour, but I have switched to Clearjel, is a modified corn starch made to withstand the heat of canning. It stirs in much easier and there is no clumping. When she would prepare this, she would bottle it and then pour hot wax to seal it. Instead, I seal it with snap lids and process it in a boiling water bath.

Enjoy!

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Serves	20 cups
Meal type	Condiment
Dunlop Brothers Family Cookbook	Helen (Humphrey) Dunlop

Ingredients

8 Cups brown sugar
6 Cups white vinegar
2 Tbsp mustard seed
1/2 cup Clearjel cornstarch (mixed with enough water, to be the consistency of cream)
4 Tbsp dry mustard
1/2 Tsp turmeric

Vegetables and fruit

1 quart New cucumbers (peeled and cut fine)
1 quart Onions (cut fine)
1 bunch celery (cut fine)
3 sweet red peppers (cut fine)
3 Large cooking apples (cut fine)

Overnight brine

1/2 cup pickling salt (add enough water to cover)

Directions

Brining

Finely chop the vegetables and fruit. I find that a mandolin does an excellent job of this. Place the chopped mixture in a large stainless steel pot.

Sprinkle the vegetables and fruit with the pickling salt and cover with water, then cover the pot.

Let it stand overnight and then drain well, before making the relish
Making the relish

Mix the brown sugar, vinegar and mustard seed in a large pot. Add the vegetable and fruit mixture to it.

Stirring slowly, let it come to a full rolling boil (i.e. one you cannot stir down). Boil for one minute and then remove from the heat.

Mix the cornstarch (Clearjel) with enough water, to be the consistency of cram. Add the dry mustard and turmeric to this mixture.

Stir the mustard/turmeric/cornstarch mixture into the vegetable/fruit mixture and boil together for a few minutes. It should have the consistency of jam. If it is not thick enough and a little more Clearjel and water
Canning

Meanwhile prepare your canning jars. They should be clean and filled with boiling water. Bring the water bath canner to a boil. Place the snap lids in a small pot and bring to a boil.

Empty the water out of the jars and ladle in the relish, leaving a half inch of head room. Wipe the top of the jar to remove any spill and then place on one of the boiling lids and screw the top in place.

Once you have enough jars to fill the canner, process them in the boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove from the canner and place on hot plate to stand for at least 24 hours. The lids should snap and seal. Any that have not sealed, should either be reprocessed or stored in the fridge to be used first.