Jessica Alfieri

writes everything you see here.

• Cheesy Love

  Aug 5, 2008 tagged as basil, caprese, mozzarella, tomato

  This is what happens when it’s August, too hot to cook, I’m sick of eating gluten free “foods,” and my husband listens to me complain.

  10:00 at night and he goes on a fresh mozzarella run.

  

  Let’s eat nothing but caprese salads this month!

  What?  I think it’s a solid plan (and I’m in good company).

  
  

• The Little Basil That Could

  Jul 30, 2008 tagged as basil, roots, tall

  A few months ago, when I started our basil crop, I took out the tiniest, cutest jar I had (from some organic, but not too tasty yogurt) and planted two little seeds, planning a plant more accessory than food.

  One of them took, and I left it in the kitchen (which is also my office) so I could look over at it all day and smile.

  Turns out the little basil wasn’t faring so well here in the back of the apartment (where we only get light for maybe four hours in the morning).  Duh.  Jessica doesn’t have a very green thumb.

  But when I moved it out front with the rest of the basil crew, the poor sun-deprived thing took off, and outgrew everything else.

  And my how-tall-can-this-thing-get experiment began.

  

  Answer: pretty damn tall.

  

  But soon I’m going to transplant this puppy into a better home.

  

  The roots have expanded to the jar’s limit, and the stem is already bark-like. It’s very ready to go.

  
  

• Basil Garden

  Jul 8, 2008 tagged as basil, garden, lemons, plants, summer, tasty

  Basil is the only thing I can both consistently keep alive (in this apartment), and use on a regular basis.  An extremely valuable intersection.  Here’s my current basil family.  In a week, it’ll be ready for another pesto harvest.

  

  Good basil always takes me back to LA (the part I liked), and my former garden glory, where I had flourishing basil, oregano, flowers, and

  

  lemons!