I was eating at my favorite deli in the world — the Second Avenue Deli in New York City — when the pickle tray came out and inspiration hit. Why were we buyin’ pickles when we could make our own to go with our sandwiches?

So we came up with our own brand of garlic dill pickles spiced up with slices of fresh jalapeño peppers. They’re appetizing and guaranteed to get your taste buds tinglin’.

Folks are always asking us to bottle ‘em, but till we do, you can make up your own batch. Keep ‘em in a crock with a tight-fittin’ lid in the fridge. They keep for weeks and weeks.

Steps

1. Wash out a 3½-quart crock with hot, sudsy water. Rinse the crock really well and dry it.
2. Slice the cucumbers into ½-inch-thick rounds. Put them in a bowl with the garlic, jalapeños, and dill. Mix well and pile them in the crock.
3. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Pull the pan off the stove and let the vinegar mixture cool for a couple of minutes. Then pour it over the cucumber slices, stirring everything up to distribute all the ingredients. Cool to room temperature.
4. Cover the crock with its lid or with some plastic wrap and put it in the fridge. Let the pickles marinate for a week. Then you can start eatin’ and eatin’ and eatin’. They’ll keep for weeks.