Refrigerator Pickled Green Tomatoes

These Refrigerator Pickled Green Tomatoes which are  naturally dairy and gluten free are the result of  dealing with the hand mother nature dealt me... We had a major hail storm come through and it just thrashed my poor garden.  I wasn't home when it happened, but my husband was and he sent me pictures of the hail on the front steps.  When he wouldn't send me pictures of the garden I knew it had to be bad.  When I got home I wanted to cry at the aftermath of the damage of a fickle mother nature!!  My tomato plants which had been loaded with green tomatoes were just broken and laying everywhere with all the lovely green tomatoes knocked off and lying askew.  I picked up all of those green tomatoes and decided to make pickled green tomatoes instead of letting them waste.  Since my green tomatoes had hail damage I had to trim my tomatoes, if you use unblemished green tomatoes then pierce the small ones a few times to help get the brine to penetrate quickly.  These dairy and gluten free Pickled Green Tomatoes are delicious and in my case might be the only tomatoes I get from my garden! 

Refrigerator Pickled Green Tomatoes

Add to the bottom each quart jar:
     4 cloves of freshly peeled garlic
     1 large fresh dill head or 1 tbs dill seeds
     1 1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns
     1 small serrano pepper with slits cut into it (optional for spice)

Green tomatoes - enough to fill how many jars you want to make.  Pack the tomatoes in tightly but do not smash them.  I like small bite sized tomatoes best (pierce these to let the brine penetrate). Halve or quarter larger tomatoes as necessary.

Brine - approximately enough for 1 quart jar (combine in a small non reactive pot and bring just to boil to dissolve ingredients.)
1 c vinegar (I like apple cider vinegar for this but white vinegar is traditional)
1 c water
2 tbs kosher salt
1 tbs sugar

Pour the brine into the jar, leaving approximately ½ inch headspace.
Tap jars gently on countertop to dislodge any trapped air bubbles.
Apply lids and let jars cool. When they've returned to room temperature, place jars in refrigerator. Let them sit for at least 1week before eating.