Basil from the Garden

Any action you can take to reduce the number of hands necessary to get food onto your table is a good thing.  For example, buying whole fresh fruits and vegetables eliminates the food processors and provides you with more nutrient dense foods.  Purchasing organic foods eliminates pesticide manufacturers and reduces exposure to dangerous carcinogens.  Buying from a local farmers market or a CSA eliminates interstate (and international) transit and reduces fossil fuel consumption.  Truth be told, the fewer people that come between you and your food, the better it is for you, and nothing cuts out the middleman like growing your own.

These days there is a big push to get folks out into the garden and cultivating their own fruits and veggies.  Growing your own means fresher, better tasting foods for you and your family.  Just imagine eating a freshly picked tomato that is still warm from the summer sun. Unless you live right next door to a farm, that’s a pleasure you can only experience when you grow your own.  There is also something innately satisfying about eating something that you have raised with your own two hands.  It reconnects you to the earth and fosters a respect for your food and the environment like nothing else can.

Unfortunately, options for growing your own food are directly proportional with the amount of land you have, and for the urban-dweller, this often means being confined to that which can be grown on a small apartment balcony or a sunny windowsill. For many city folk, homegrown tomatoes, squash and cucumbers are just not an option. However, there is one category of plants that even the most space-challenged city slicker can grow, and that is herbs.

Herbs are relatively easy to grow, and demand so little space that they are perfect for container gardening. Perhaps the easiest of all herbs to grow is basil.

Fresh basil is delicious and has a wide range of uses.  Finish your marinara or other tomato-based sauces with a little to give it a fresh, bright flavor. It is an essential ingredient in a Caprese salad and gives Thai and other Asian dishes a whole new dimension.  You can also use it in salads and even desserts like lime basil sorbet.  And don’t forget that mother of all basil preparations pesto. Your dinner guest are sure to be impressed when you serve up a batch of pasta with homemade pesto made with the basil from your own garden.

Ocimum basilicum, as it is officially known, is a member of the mint family, and although it is often thought of as a “Mediterranean herb”, basil is believed to have originated in India and Southeast Asia. There are numerous varieties including lemon, cinnamon, purple and Thai.  Some of these can taste clove-like, lemony or even like licorice, but it is sweet basil, most commonly associated with Italian cuisine, that is the most widely used.

Basil is not a fussy plant, and practically grows itself.  All it needs is 6-8 hours of sunshine and enough water to keep it from wilting, and it will do the rest.  Best of all, you don’t need a large back yard to grow a season’s worth.  I am able to get nearly four months of it from a single 30x13x12 inch planter box called an Earthbox.  It sets on my back deck, which faces south, and makes an attractive addition.  It’s perfect if all you have is a small balcony, but it will also work in the yard.

Here are a few tips I have learned for successfully growing basil:

• Starting with small plants from the garden shop instead of seeds will mean more basil and sooner
• Don’t plant too early – wait until the night time temperatures stay above 50° F/10° C
• Feed once when planting and again in late-July-to-early-August (if using an Eathbox, you need only feed once, at planting)
• Do not over water, especially in the early stages of the plants – allow the soil to become slightly dry before watering again
• Snipping back the tips will force new branches and make for a bushier plant

To ensure a continual supply of fresh leaves after the plants have reached a height of about 18 inches or better, harvest about every two weeks taking down a third of the stem or more.  If a stem is beginning to flower, cut it back even harder; just leave at least one node of two or more leaves.  Then give it a week or two for fresh growth.

You might be surprised how much basil you are able to grow from a container about the size of the one I use.  You may have more on your hands than you can use at one time.  Just remember you can always share with family or friends.  A small bundle of fresh basil makes a thoughtful gift for just about anyone who likes to cook. Of course, you can always whip up a batch of pesto.  It will last a few days in the refrigerator, or you freeze it and take it out in the fall or winter when you need to be reminded of summer’s warmth.

I have found the best way to store fresh basil is outside of the refrigerator. I usually tie a bunch of stems together with a little string, clip the ends and put them in a glass of water like you would flowers.  The secret is to get them into the water as soon as you harvest them.  Every few days I change the water and snip a little off  the stem ends. This allows the leaves to drink up more water.  Believe it or not, I have been able to keep basil fresh this way for over a week.  In fact, cuttings will continue to grow this way. I often have flowers bud and roots emerge from the stems ends.

The arrangement looks attractive on your kitchen counter and you can pick off leaves as you need them. If you must put them in the refrigerator, don’t rinse the leaves before storing.  Keep them dry and place them in a plastic bag with a slightly dampened paper towel.

I’ve included my recipe for basic pesto here, which I think has the perfect ratio of ingredients. You can always tweak them to your liking, but this is a good place to begin.  It makes enough pesto for a pound of pasta with just enough left over to use as a spread on sandwiches or a topping for grilled chicken breast or roasted vegetables.  I hope you enjoy it.  If you try it, let me know how it compares to other pesto recipes you’ve used.

Let’s eat.

Pesto

Ingredients:

• 2 cups basil leaves, heavily packed
• 1-2 cloves garlic, coarsely minced
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted and cooled
• ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil, use one of good quality
• 1/3 – ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated

Preparation:

Into the bowl of a food processor, add the basil, minced garlic, roasted pine nuts and salt. Process on high for about 15-20 seconds.  With the processor still running, slowly pour in the olive oil and continue to puree until smooth.

Pour into a mixing bowl and stir-in grated parmesan. Taste for salt and add as needed.

Serve immediately over warm pasta or store in an air-tight container and cover with a layer of olive oil to prevent discoloration.  Pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.  If you would like to freeze the pesto, I recommend leaving out the parmesan.  You can add it after the pesto has been thawed.  This way it will last about three months.

Tagged as: basil, earthbox, growing, Pesto