Mantia's Pickles--The Secret Revealed

We get so many requests for our pickles, and sometimes folks get a little testy when we won't sell them. We make them here, and we just don't have enough room to make more than we do now. This isn't a secret recipe; it is in most of the community cookbooks in the South, as Fire and Ice, Good and Evil, or Sweet and Hot.

Here is what you do: Got to Sam's or Costco and pick up a gallon jar of whole dill pickles. Dump them in a colander and drain them, discarding the liquid. Cut them as you prefer. We do chunks here, but at home I like to do some of them in slices, because I like them so well on sandwiches.

Anyway, besides the pickles you need two pounds of white sugar, 1/4 cup of garlic, peeled and very finely minced (we do ours in the Cuisinart) and a small bottle of Tobasco sauce. Some recipes call for also adding pickling spices, but we don't.

Now, in the original jar, layer some of the pickles, some of the sugar, some of the garlic and a few sprinkles of Tobasco. Repeat until everything is used up (we only use the equivalent of about half the small bottle of Tobasco for this quantity).

Put the top on tightly and keep in a cool dark spot (no need to refrigerate) for at least two weeks, turning upside down every couple of days. They keep just fine at room temperature, but chill before eating for the best texture.

That's it!