If I were not a Christian (which I am) and if I believed in reincarnation (which I don’t), I would want to come back as a rich woman’s cat.
I would sleep most of the day on her bed if she weren’t looking, eat the food and drink the water provided for me, look out the window at the birds, and not have to worry about the cold, rain and snow of bad weather. There would be no predators.
Because that is not going to be, this week I had to face the reality of the basket of cucumbers waiting to be turned into pickles. The recipe I used was from Elese Windham of St. Helena Baptist Church, located on the Sea Island Parkway on St. Helena Island.
The church dates back from its groundbreaking Feb. 20, 1966. It currently has a membership of around 300, with an average attendance of about 150, and is part of Savannah River Association. Rev. Richard Spearman has served as pastor since 2003.
The recipe was a good choice. It made a lot, about eight pints, and was easy. It could be completed in one day and didn’t involve sitting for three or four days, although many of those recipes produce really good pickles.
Elese, retired from a banking career, and her husband W.K., who retired after a 26-year career as postmaster at Fairfax, have lived in St. Helena for several years. They came to St. Helena with friends many years ago to visit and decided when the time came they would move there (which they did), and joined St. Helena Baptist Church. They are busy there.
They are both in the couples Sunday school class “Growing with God,” are part of the church choir, where W.K. frequently has solo parts, and are in the Seniors Group. They are also part of Land’s End, a group of weekenders and retirees who have known each other for years.
Elese Windham
The Windhams have two children. Their daughter, Rachelle, and her husband, Mike Googe, have a son, Michael, at Wade Hampton High School in Hampton – who, according to his grandmother, is “a great baseball player.” The Windhams’ son Walt is married to Jessica and they have three children. Their son Joshua is currently serving with the Army in Afghanistan; their daughter Brittany is a junior at Lander; and their son Brandon, a recent graduate of USC-Aiken, works with a moving company in Augusta, Ga.
We thank Elese for sharing the recipe with us. Even if you don’t normally make pickles or do other kinds of food preservation, try this. It’s easy and it’s good. In fact, you may want to open a jar one day soon to try them for … Sunday Dinner.
Crisp Pickle Slices
4 quarts sliced cucumbers
6 medium onions, sliced
2 green peppers, chopped
3 cloves garlic
⅓ cup salt
1½ cups sugar
1½ teaspoons turmeric
1½ teaspoons celery seed
2 tablespoons mustard seed
3 cups vinegar
Wash and thinly slice cucumbers and place in large cooking container.
Add the onions, peppers and whole garlic cloves. Add salt. Cover with cracked ice, mix and let stand three hours. Drain thoroughly.
Combine remaining ingredients and pour over the cucumber mixture.
Heat just to boiling.
Have ready sterilized pint jars, lids and rings. Spoon cucumber mix into jars, cover with the vinegar mixture. Run a knife around inside jar to remove any air bubbles. Put on lids and rings, and screw tightly. Makes 6-8 pints.