Canning Pickled Milkweed Bud Capers

I tried unopened milkweed flower buds several years ago and since then they have been one of my favorite wild edibles.  They grow abundantly here (as in fields of them) so I am not concerned with depleting the food source for butterflies.  I usually only take one pom pom of buds from each plant leaving the rest.  They taste like mild asparagus.  Pickling them produces a strong similarity to capers. 

Pickled Milkweed Capers

Ingredients:

1 loosely filled gallon baggie of milkweed bud pom poms (do not remove individual buds yet)
9 cups of water (using 3 cups per day)
12 tablespoons kosher salt (use 4 per day)
2 1/2 cups white wine vinegar

Buds after boiling.

bay leaves (1 per jar)
fresh thyme (1 per jar)
5 teaspoons of sugar

Directions:

Day One:

Bring a pot of water to boil.  Wash milkweed buds and boil for 2 minutes (no longer).  Drain and spray cool water on the buds. Carefully trim individual buds from the pom pom into a bowl with clean scissors.

Mix three cups of water with 4 tablespoons of salt.  Pour over buds.  This should just cover buds.  Place paper towel over and allow to sit until the next day.

Day Two:

Drain.  Mix three cups of water with 4 tablespoons of salt.  Pour over buds.  This should just cover buds.  Place paper towel over and allow to sit until the next day.

Day Three:

Drain.  Mix three cups of water with 4 tablespoons of salt.  Pour over buds.  This should just cover buds.  Place paper towel over and allow to sit until the next day.

Day Four:

Drain and rinse buds.   Prepare half pint canning jars and lids.  I finished with five half pint jars filled.  Per jar, you will need 1/2 cup of vinegar, one each bay leaf, one stick of fresh thyme and one teaspoon of sugar.  Adjust accordingly.


Bring vinegar, bay leaves, thyme and sugar to boil.  In each jar add a bay leaf and stick of thyme.  Add buds.  Pour vinegar over buds to 1/2 inch head space.

Waterbath for 10 minutes.