Lentil veggie and garden leek soup with pesto butter and homemade bread

These pictures are from December 1. We took out all the basil and peppers and some of the leeks, and spaced out the other leeks better. The basil went into a pesto butter with garlic, butter, and almonds. The leeks went into a lentil veggie soup. We served the dinner with white wine and homemade whole wheat baguette.

Pizza with the end of the garden basil

Homemade farfalle with tomatoes, basil, and ricotta salata

Picnic near Coit Tower: grilled sea bass with potato salad and dill pickles

Mayonnaise, it turns out, is as easy as anything. We followed the recipe from Julia Child and Company (1978): "Using the metal blade (I never use the plastic one for anything), process [1 whole] egg, [2 egg] yolkds, [1 teaspoon Dijon] mustard, and ½ teaspoon salt for 30 seconds. Then add 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar and process half a minute more. Finally, in a very thin stream, pour in [2 cups olive and/or peanut] oil. When all has gone in, remove cover, check consistency, and taste for seasoning."

So make your own mayonnaise. Also halve a pound of fingerling potatoes and boil them in salted water until cooked but still al dente. Dice a stick or two of celery and about a third of a large red onion. Combine the potatoes, celery, and red onion with some mayonnaise, and maybe some salt and some sherry vinegar. Transfer to a large tuperware container.

Check two half-pound pieces of seabass for scales, and then coat them in a few spoonfuls of mayonnaise. Heat up the grill and cook the bass evenly on all sides, adding some fresh tarragon near the end of the cooking. Let the fish cool slightly and then move to a tuperware.

Finally, prepare a final salad (not pictured) with heirloom tomatoes, garden basil, and a little salt, olive oil, and just a touch of balsamic vinegar.

Pack a cooler with the dishes, and add also a jar of homemade dill pickles (use a recent batch that still has some bite). Find a beautiful picnic spot, and enjoy an early dinner with a nice bottle of red wine.

In particular, find a spot just below Coit Tower by cutting off the trail up a little early. Start dinner around 3:30pm and eat for an hour, and then discover that you don't have time to climb the tower. Instead, head down to Pier 33 for the ferry to Alcatraz Island. Watch Hamlet on Alcatraz, arguably the best Shakespeare production you've seen (and you've seen shows at Ashland — it helps that Hamlet is such a good script). Encourage all your friends to go too, although it looks like they might have sold out.

Tomato, basil, and mozzarella pizza

Heirloom tomatoes from Riverdog, basil and basil flowers from the garden, fresh mozzarella from Belfiore.

Rigatoni with heirloom tomatoes and garden basil

Riverdog has been giving us beautiful heirloom tomatoes in all different colors, ranging from wine to lemon. And our garden has produced a bouquet of basil with light greens but also eggplant-purples. Toss tomatoes, basil, minced garlic, and olive oil with al dente rigatoni, and serve with a grated parmesan or romano.

Pesto with garden basil

Lunch: Greek salad and cappuccino

In the salad we had an Armenian cucumber from Riverdog, sliced and dressed in balsamic vinaigrette; cubed French feta cheese; and early girl tomatoes, fresh basil, and fresh oregano from the garden. The coffee, as always, is made with Straus milk and Blue Bottle espresso.

Camping: farfalle with red sauce

For our last night camping, we made pasta. For the sauce, we sauteed onions and garlic, added bell peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes, and topped it off with herbs we had brought from our garden at home. We served the dinner with the Pinot Noir from Territorial, a Willamette Valley vineyard.

Camping: tomato, basil, and fresh mozarella sandwich on the top of a mountain

Hand-made pesto with hand-made semolina egg noodles

First dinner at Indian Lake: farfalle with tomatoes, basil, garlic, and feta

The tomatoes and garlic came from the farmers' market in Troy, NY, although the pasta, basil, and feta were from the supermarket in North Creek. When we found the Troy farmers' market, we decided to try to do our shopping there, so we had lunch and then looked around. Then, just as we were starting to buy things, the bell rang signaling the end of the market. We did manage to get some absolutely amazing romano-style goat cheese from Gillis Acres Farm to go on top of the pasta.

Lunch: caprese salad and cappuccino

Pasta caprese

For a fantastic, simple pasta, mix al dente penne, fresh mozzarella, lots of basil, minced garlic, olive oil, and the very best tomatoes you can find. Serve with a grated parmesan or romano. Another nice dish, substitute feta for the mozzarella, and reduce or drop the basil.