Jalapeno Peppers for Nachos

We have one jalapeno pepper plant this year, but it's been a big producer.  We've cut and seeded and frozen a whole bunch of them for making jalapeno poppers - perhaps our favorite guilty pleasure appetizer.  With the colder weather coming, we wanted to pull a bunch more off of the plant and water bath can some pickled jalapeno slices for nachos.  Here's a little mess of them.  I like the red sprinkled in with the green for color.

On a cutting board, we slice them up in quarter inch width rounds.  Here's the part where most people will remind you to put on gloves.  I don't do this, but I repeat to myself over and over to not get my hands anywhere near my eyes.  I've learned my lesson the hard way.

Since we'll be eating these on nachos, a pint jar is about the right size.  What you don't eat at first, you can just screw the lid on and put back in the ice box.  Maybe a half pint would work out better?  I pack the jars so that I can calculate how much pickling brine to make up.  Today I'm making 3 pints.

For each pint jar you'll need to calculate 1/2 cup plus 1 TBS white vinegar, 1/2 cup plus 1 TBS water.  I heat this on the stove until its about to boil then I pour in each jar.  To each jar I added 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon pickling spice, 1 bay leaf, and 1 clove garlic.  I screw the lids on ensuring I have 1/2 inch headspace.

We set a large pot of water boiling and put the jars in, making sure that the jars a covered by 2 inches of water.  Once the water is boiling, leave them in for 12 minutes.

Take out and allow to cool.  Make sure your lids have sealed.

Now, we're ready for some nachos to snack on!