What to do on a snow day?

I have a lot of edibles in my garden, yet I don't really make the most of them. In fact last year my apples went to the tip, the red currants were left for the birds and the strawberries rotted due to neglect.

My strawberries might have gone to waste last year, but this year I am positive I will get a bumper crop. This weekend before it snowed I transplanted my strawberries into hanging baskets, gave them a sprinkling of strawberry fertilizer, mulched them with pine needles then hung them in my magnolia tree. When the fruit begins to develop I will drape over some bird netting to ensure that all those ripe strawberries are for human consumption only.

This year I aim to be a productive gardener and I am going to start by going out of my comfort zone and trying new things. Today was a perfect opportunity to put words into action, due to a antartic blast we are stuck inside at Galloway Street. I braved the cold for a minute to grab  10 artichoke buds from my globe artichoke plant so I could  try my luck at pickling. I looked up a few recipes online and chose the one that I actually had the ingredients for. Didn't end up with a full jar at the end of it all but they might do well in a salad sometime next week. 

What you need:

·      2kg of the small artichokes (the larger ones are too tough for eating)

·      Lemon juice

·      3 tbsps olive oil

·      1 tbsp salt

·      2 tbsps sugar

·      2-3 garlic cloves

·      3 tbsps table vinegar (9%)

·      Parsley

1.  Wash the artichoke and peel the tough outer layers off, then cut the top and bottom bits off so you are left with only tender artichoke.

2.  Immerse in lemon juice to stop browning

3.  Bring 1L of water to the boil then add the oil, salt, sugar and vinegar and artichoke and boil for 5 minutes

4.  While waiting for the artichokes to cook sterilise a jar with lid in boiling water

5.  Line the jar with parsley and garlic cloves then add the artichokes and liquid to the jar and seal with the lid.