Cassia Bud Pickles - cooking recipe

Ingredients

4 pt. water
1 c. salt
3 doz. 3-inch cucumbers
1/2 tsp. powdered alum
3 c. vinegar
4 c. sugar
1/2 oz. celery seed (2 Tbsp.)
1/2 oz. cassia buds (2 Tbsp.)

Preparation

Heat water and salt to boiling; cool and add to washed cucumbers, split lengthwise.
Cover; let stand 1 week.
Drain; cover with boiling water and add alum.
Let stand 24 hours.
Drain and cover with hot syrup made by heating vinegar and 2 1/2 cups sugar, the celery seed and cassia buds (tied in a bag) for 3 successive days.
Drain off syrup; add 1/2 cup sugar.
Heat and pour over pickles.
On third day, drain off syrup; heat to boiling and pack pickles in hot sterilized jars.
Add boiling syrup to cover the pickles.