Refrigerator Dill Pickles (aka Quick Pickles or Quickles)

With and abundance of cucumbers in the garden, I decided to give refrigerator pickles a try last weekend.  Also called quick pickles or quickles, refrigerator pickles come in handy if you want to make homemade pickles but don't want to can pickles.  Unlike canned pickles that have a long shelf life, quick pickles only last a few weeks in the fridge, so it is best to just a make a batch at a time.  

I was very pleased with the results of my refrigerator pickles.  I made four jars of pickles, using a combination of both sweet and dill pickles and spears and sliced pickles.  Here is the recipe I found for dill quick pickles.  I based my recipe off this, but made a few adaptions.  Below is what I came up with that worked for me.

INGREDIENTS:
Cucumbers (enough to fill two quart jars, I did one jar of sliced pickling cucumbers and one jar of cucumber spears)
3 1/2 c. water
1 1/4 c. vinegar
1 tbs.sugar
1 tbs. sea salt
2 tbs. pepper corn
2 tsp. mustard seeds
2 cloves of garlic
4-6 sprigs of fresh dill

DIRECTIONS:
Fill two jars with cucumbers.  Add 2-3 sprigs of fresh dill in each jar.  Add one tbs. of pepper corn and 1 tsp. of mustard seed to each jar.  Add a clove of garlic to each jar (I quartered each clove of garlic).  In a large sauce pan, combine remaining ingredients over high heat and bring to a boil.  Take off heat and let cool completely before pouring liquid over cucumbers using a funnel.  Seal with lids and keep in fridge for four days before eating.  

* I've been told refrigerator pickles last a few weeks in the fridge, although I can't confirm this as ours were eaten up within a week:)