Scrub the beets thoroughly, leaving the taproot and about 2 inches of stem attached.

Sort the beets roughly by size and place them in a large pot. Cover with water and cook until tender, about 20 to 40 minutes depending on their size.

Drain the beets and discard the cooking water. Cool until they can be comfortably handled.

Slip off the skins and remove the stems and roots. Leave small baby beets whole. Slice or quarter larger beets.

Prepare your boiling water canner, jars and lids.

Place the pickling spice in a spice bag or tie it securely in cheesecloth.

Combine the vinegar, 1 cup fresh water, sugar and spice bag in a large stainless-steel pot. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves.

Reduce the heat and boil gently for 15 minutes.

Remove and discard the spice bag. Add the prepared beets and return the mixture to a boil.

Using a slotted spoon, pack the hot beets into hot pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.

Ladle the hot pickling liquid over the beets, maintaining 1/2 inch headspace.

Remove air bubbles. Check the headspace again and add additional hot brine if needed.

Wipe the jar rims, center the lids and apply the bands fingertip-tight.

Process pint jars in a boiling water canner for 30 minutes at elevations up to 1,000 feet. Adjust the processing time for higher elevations using the chart above.

Allow the jars to cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours before checking the seals, labeling and moving them to the pantry.