Pesto with sweet peppers and walnuts
This was a hard gardening year here. During midsummer there was a prolonged period of heat and drought. It was so bad that the deer ate tomato plants and the leaves of young oak trees, something I’ve never seen before. Gardens without irrigation were ruined. After the rain returned, the deer of course went back to their usual diets. In spite of the rough summer, the spring and fall hay crops were good, so the horses and cattle should eat well this winter, even though, like the deer, the pasture animals had a rough time of it during the summer.
After the rain from Hurricane Helene in late September, my basil plants rebounded. Today I pretty much clipped all the new growth. The first frost probably is not far off. Basil is precious.
I’ll be getting fresh vegetables through late November from my local young farmers, Brittany and Richard — broccolini, baby bok choi, sweet potatoes, sweet peppers, lettuces, beets, and such. Last week I got the last of the summer okra. I’ve been roasting it and tossing it into pasta dishes with parmesan.
As usual it looks tasty/yummy, but not all the time – I’ve tried Vegan types of food knowing it is better for your body; vascular, organs, etc. My wife and I go to a local Viet Pho-Vegan for their soups, that we really like. I’m still the basic male ; when I get a whiff of a burger/red meat I salivate, I move on though. I would really like a vegan gluten free pizza . I have been eating tons of fruit (blueberry/banana/grapes, kiwi, apples, oranges, grapefruit) with 0% yogurt and low cal, no salt sugar O’s. Plenty of broccolini, kale etc.
I recently suffered a heart issue I’ve been plenty careful. Although the cardiologist said “well you are 84, you have this and that, continue with aspirin and statin and you should live another 10 years .
I truly enjoy your culinary articles. Regards, Henry
Hi Henry: I suppose one of the reasons for eating healthy is to save up for the occasional sin!