Basil-Cilantro Pesto

My friend Reilly recently harvested a bountiful amount of fresh basil and cilantro from his fire escape garden and wasn't sure what to do with all of it. I thought what better way to use these fragrant, fresh herbs than to make pesto!

To make this pesto recipe you will need a large handful of basil, an equally large handful of cilantro, half a lemon, two to three garlic gloves (depending on your love of garlic), sliced almonds, olive oil, and salt. Also, a very sharp knife and cutting board. We are doing this by hand people! First, make a small pile in the middle of your cutting board with about a quarter of your basil and cilantro.

Typically, when Italians make pesto by hand they use a tool called a mezzaluna, or half moon. This tool allows you to rock back and forth, easily slicing through your herbs. However, if you're like me, and don't have a mezzaluna, you can replicate this motion with your knife.

When you've thoroughly chopped half the amount of basil and cilantro, put your garlic cloves on top of your pesto pile and continue the rocking motion of your knife to incorporate. Then, sprinkle about 1/3 cup of slice almonds on your freshly sliced mound.



Making pesto by hand is a lot harder and more time consuming then just throwing your ingredients in a food processer, but the aroma you get from thinly slicing the herbs yourself is worth the sweat and calluses. When you have thoroughly incorporated your almonds and garlic cloves try to create a little pesto ball with your hands.

If it stays clumped and upright in a tight mound, then the consistency is perfect!

Transfer your mound to a small bowl and drizzle with olive oil, lemon, and salt to taste. Spread on a piece of good bread and enjoy with friends! Here's Reilly chowin' down :)

Other classic pesto combinations are basil/pine nuts/parmesan cheese, peas/parmesan cheese/garlic, arugula/pistachio/garlic, and cilantro/jalapenos/pine nuts. All delicious!





Williams-Sonoma Mezzaluna

Green Tomatoes

My little sister's favorite movie is Fried Green Tomatoes and it's all I can think about as I stare at my slowly growing, green tomato, resisting the urge to pluck it and fry it. I know it will be better juicy and red in a caprese salad, but I'm getting impatient for some scrumptious summer tomatoes. Isn't it a beauty?

 

And flanking it on either side are two baby tomatoes.

 

The other plants nearby are flowering as well and these little yellow flowers will hopefully get pollinated and become new tomatoes! Tip: If you are growing tomatoes indoors, try to gently shake the plant's stem so that it will self-pollinate since wind and insects won't be doing the job.

 

So far the tomatoes have been loving their sunny Brooklyn fire escape. However, it can get a little windy since it is on the top floor and some of the stakes were starting to blow over. My crafty boyfriend came up with a brilliant solution to tie the top of the stakes to the fire escape's railing, which has worked out perfectly!

 

Sun. Check. 

Rope contraption to stabilize plants. Check. 

Yellow Flowers. Check

3 baby tomatoes. Check

We are well on our way to having a plethora of juicy, red, organic heirloom tomatoes come July. Can't wait!

Baby Tomato

I HAVE A TOMATO! It's small and green, but IT'S A TOMATO!



I'll share more pictures this weekend because there are about four more baby tomatoes popping out.

Royal Horticultural Society

In honor of the Royal Horticultural Society's annual Chelsea Flower show, Vogue created four flower arrangements based on runway looks. Très chic floral inspirations for a sunny Memorial Day weekend!

Vogue Daily

R.I.P. Terrarium

Well, my beautiful terrarium went from this:

 

To this:

 

Because of this:

 

It was so depressing looking, I didn't even bother to take a good picture of it :( I loved how some of the leaves had a pinkish tint so I tried to get a plant at the farmer's market that had the same hue. Hopefully Hello's insatiable appetite for my plants won't effect this one.

 

So far, she's not interested.

Tomatoes

The time has finally come to plant my tomatoes outside in the Brooklyn air! Once night temperatures start to consistently stay above 45 degrees, it's OK to put your plants outside because they will no longer freeze at night. Tomato plants need at least 8 hours of direct sun and, luckily, my boyfriend has a west-facing fire escape that will be perfect for these sun-loving plants.

 

In addition to tomato plants I bought some basil, mint, marigolds, lavender, and cilantro. Marigolds are perfect plants to compliment tomatoes because they tend to keep away the harmful bugs. This is called "companion planting" and a lot of gardeners take advantage of certain plants benefiting others. Another common combo is corn, beans, and squash, but this urban gardener unfortunately doesn't have enough room for corn...

When buying plants, make sure that there aren't any brown leaves, unusual coloring or spotting, and that they are fragrant. If anything looks dead then you're already off to a bad start by purchasing that plant. Also, make sure that you have enough room for your plants because when you purchase them they are young and small, but by the end of summer your plants are going to be at least double their size. 

As my Brooklyn Botanic Garden teachers say, mint is "kind of a thug in the garden," and will completely take over so you should plant it in it's own container. My lavender's roots were suffocating each other so, before I planted it, I gently pried them a part so they could breathe.

 

My tomato plants were also suffocating in their little yogurt containers so I was ecstatic to finally free them of their confines and let them breathe.

 

Unlike most plants, tomatoes do better if planted deeper than they were grown in containers. Make sure to purchase a pot that is at least eight inches deep so you can bury the tomato deep enough, usually up to the bottom-most leaves. Remove those leaves and roots will form along the buried stem, establishing a stronger root system.

 

 

Once your plants are tall enough (they flop over without any support), you should stake them. I bought tomato plant stakes and gardening twine at the hardware store, but you can pretty much use any strong stick to stabalize your plant. Space it about three inches away from the stem in order to give the plant room and not damage the roots when you spear it into the soil.

 

To secure the plant create a figure-eight loop and tie the ends to the stick, not the plant.

 

Once you are finished planting, immediately water your plants. It's a little shocking to them to be transplanted and a nice douse of water will make them feel better.

 

Then sit back and enjoy your hard work! I'm looking forward to some pesto, mojitos, caprese salads, and guacamole!

Alexander McQueen

Last night was the 2011 Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museem of Art aka the Met Ball. This year's accompanying exhibition is dedicated to Alexander McQueen with about 100 of his creations on view at the Met until the end of July. How amazing is this dress made almost entirely of flowers?

Bring on the May flowers!