PESTO!

MONDAY, JULY 5, 2004

MONDAY JULY 5, 2004

Today, for the first time this summer, I had enough basil to make pesto!!!! I wanted to wait until all the plants were well established before I put them under any stress, and today was the day! Yummy!

I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that the center area of our garden receives too much afternoon sun for the plants that are there now. Although the garden is shady for the most part, every part of the garden does get sun for some part of the day. The area in question gets sun for maybe three hours, bur unfortunately it’s during the hottest part of the day. The good news is that I might be able to have my McCartney rose next summer!

Although fall is the best time to plant shrubs, roses, and trees in the states, I’m not sure if the same holds true for Italy. The dampness combined with the colder temperatures may have an adverse affect, but I’ll ask at the garden center.

Other news is that I have been advised by many who know what they’re talking about that what I need is an ELECTRIC oven, not a gas oven. As I have written many times before, I HATE MY OVEN!!! I can NOT get it to maintain a consistent temperature, and now that I am baking bread, a consistent temperature is very important. I’m going to call Elvio to ask if it’s possible for me to have an electric oven, and just how much it will cost to make the change. Then I’ll have to find out how much an electric oven will cost.

I ordered a gas oven because I thought it would be a lot cheaper than an electric one. I never had a problem with gas ovens in the states, but over here, it’s another story. It may be a while before I get the new oven, but hopefully I will get this problem taken care of eventually.

This week is expected to be the hottest yet…temps in the 90’s, but with the lower humidity, it isn’t quite as bad as we were used to in Louisville.