Today's forecast is 85F and we'll be running the AC, which is just crazy in October. Last year this weekend we had a frost advisory for which I lovingly covered my garden in sheets, only to discover 2 inches of wet snow the next day.
To add misery to the mix, there had been wind that night that blew my sheets off some of the herbs and I lost my basil which I discovered is far too tender for cold weather. I did of course make an attempt to try and save the basil by researching the internet. Several sites suggested that a person could still dry the leaves in the dehydrator so I cleaned the dark soggy leaves as best I could and put them in the dehydrator. No luck. They did dry but into flavorless black things that were not fit for use.
Having learned that lesson, I made sure I harvested my basil last weekend when they issued a frost advisory. I clipped out all the basil stalks, washed them carefully in the sink to get rid of all the bugs and dirt, and laid them on layers of tea towels to dry. It turned out that we did not get frost that night but it was good to force me to make the pesto, lots, and get it into the freezer for the winter.
This time I made Sun-dried tomato basil pesto. It's hard to share the recipe because I'm an experimental cook but pretty much it was:
- 1/2 Costco size jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
- cake mixing bowl 3/4 full of basil leaves that had the stems pinched off
- 5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
- about 2 cups of parmesan cheese
- lots and lots of olive oil, pour freely
Process until well blended. I use the blender although it's more challenging and would be a lot easier with a food processor (which is on my wish list).
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