Pickled Carrots and Japanese Cucumbers

For some reason I woke up this morning wanting to make pickled carrots. Luckily a few months ago I spotted pickleing spice in a international supermarket. I took a quick look on the internet and found a recipe on Cooks.com that looked similar to my moms. I followed it to the t.

Pickled Carrots

1 lb. carrots (I used five Japanese-sized carrots)
1 1/2 c. white vinegar
1/2 c. water
1 c. sugar
3 tbsp. mixed pickling spice

Wash and scrape carrots. Cut into thin sticks. Cook carrots in boiling water until almost tender. (Can add salt if wanted.) Drain. In pot combine remaining ingredients with 1/2 cup water and bring to boil. Place carrots into hot sterilized jars. Pour over carrots and seal. Makes about 2 pints.

After making the first pickles I just played around with the Japanese cucumbers. Here is my recipe:

Pickled Japanese Cucumbers

4 japanese cucumbers
1 1/4c vinegar
1tbsp dill seed
1/2c water
1/3c sugar
1tbsp salt

Slice the cucumbers thinly, put them in a bowl, cover with a heavy dish and let sit for 30min.
Add rest of ingredients to a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Rinse cucumbers and put in steralized jar, cover with liquid and seal. Let sit for about a week.