Continuing my ongoing series on eating and canning seasonally, what’s new for March?
As the weather is still treacherous, only robust stuff is coming into season. Thankfully there’s more to choose from this month:

* New this month
*Asparagus
Green Cabbage
Fingerling carrots
Peas
Scallions / green / spring onions
*Spinach
Turnip
Greens – turnip and mustard
*Bok Choi
*Swiss Chard
*Onions
Kale
Arugula / Rocket

Going out of season after this month:
Collard Greens

From a canning perspective, a lot of these are not really worth canning (over cooked spinach anyone?), but you can pickle turnips, make onion relish, and freeze others to carry you through to next winter.

PICKLED TURNIPS
Recipe from Ashael Raveh

1.5 kg / 3.3lbs fresh medium turnips
1 small beet
2 stalks of celery
1-2 green chili peppers
0.7l / 3 cups of water
3 teaspoons salt
3 spoons vinegar
Half a teaspoon citric salt (Sodium citrate)
1-2 dry bay leaves
A few whole allspice cloves
Pickle jar with a tight lid – sterilized

Preparation:
Mix all the ingredients but the turnips, celery, chili peppers and the beet in a pickle jar. Peel the turnips and the beet, quarter and cut into slices, about half a centimeter / 0.2in thick. Chop the celery stalks into 5 cm / 2in pieces. Cut the chili peppers in half and remove the seeds. Add the vegetables to the jar. If the liquids do not cover the vegetables, add more water with one teaspoon of salt and one spoon of vinegar per glass. Close the jar tightly and leave in the shade for 4 days [Turn the jar upside-down every day or so – just to mix well – while it pickles] before moving to the fridge.