Things That Work for Me - Overwintering your favorite Basils

I'm not a huge fan of growing Basil from seed - you've probably figured out by now that I'm into EASY!- so I took cuttings from my three favorite Basil plants before the frost in fall, rooted them in glasses of water, then planted them and have kept them in my window all winter, waiting to be planted in the Spring.  They have done very well and even grown quite a bit, I keep them trimmed since I want them to just focus on developing a strong root system for next year.

Things That Work for Me - Window Garden

Part of my winter gardening goes on in my south facing kitchen and family room windows which I have built shelves into.  Above is a picture of my Cayenne Pepper plant which is still blooming and growing peppers as it has been all winter.  A couple of weeks ago I harvested about 40 peppers from it and trimmed it down to help it focus on a small area for the rest of the winter.  I transplanted this from the ground in the fall and will plant it back outside in the spring.  I did the same thing last winter and it's still producing tons of peppers for me!

Next to it is Kale from seeds that I planted a couple of weeks ago.

Potato (or Multiplier) Onions

In February we will having a class on growing Potato Onions by Kelly Winterton who developed large multiplier onions here in northern Utah! These onions grow like garlic, with 2-8 onions cloning from each onion. The onions are 1-3" in size and they store well. You can plant them in the fall at the same time as your garlic, or in the spring. Kelly will be bringing seed for us to grow out, which we can then grow as clones.

If you are interested in getting seeds, please read this booklet now by Kelli to learn about them.

Rockin' Rampicante

I'm falling more and more in love with the versatility of Rampicante!  Tonight I made my favorite lasagna recipe, substituting mandalin sliced Rampicante for the pasta.  So yummy!  Peel the Rampicante, cut into 4-6" pieces or as long as you can slice on your mandalin lengthwise, the thickness should be the same as lasagna noodles, do not precook - stack in your lasagna raw, and use in your favorite lasagna recipe.  Cooking time should be the same as your recipe calls for, I cooked mine at 350 degrees for 50 min.

Companion Planting - Peas

Peas grow well with Carrots, Turnips, Radishes, Cucumbers, Corn, Beans, and Potatoes as well as many aromatic herbs.

Peas do not grow well with Onions, Garlic and Gladiolus.

Pea plants and roots contain large amounts of Nitrogen, so compost them!

Wood ashes used around the base of pea vines help to control aphids.

Companion Planting - Onions

Onions are a pest repellent for Carrots

Onions and all members of the Cabbage family get along well.  Onions also like Beets, Strawberries, Tomatoes, Lettuce, Summer Savory and Camomile (sparsely).

Onions do not like Peas and Beans.

Onion maggots travel from plant to plant when set in a row, so scatter your onion plants throughout the garden.

Pesto Rampicante with fresh Tomato for lunch!

I cooked with Rampicante for the first time today, just throwing together some things I had in the garden and fridge, and so enjoyed the results, that I thought I'd share.  I found that I like the flavor of Rampicante better than zucchini, it's very mild, and the texture sautéed was perfectly crisp.  I loved that it was solid flesh throughout most of the squash which lended beautifully to julienne slicing, and I only needed 6" of it for my meal.

Rampicante Pesto with Fresh Tomato

6" of young Rampicante, julienne sliced
small hand full of Red Onion, sliced
Sea Salt to taste
Olive or Coconut Oil

Heat oil in a skillet on medium, sauté Rampicante and Onions seasoned with salt until just tender.

Pesto

Add the pesto to the skillet and mix, as soon as the pesto is warmed up, remove from heat and serve.

Garnish with fresh sliced Tomatoes and Basil