Favorite Wine & How to Root Basil

When Charlie and I were first married and living in our apartment back in Richmond, we had a small, overgrown backyard that we turned into a sweet little garden.  We lived there for two years and had so much fun taking care of our plants, a variety of herbs and vegetables.  We even had a compost pile!

Here in Dominica, we live in a little apartment on the edge of a small farm, and although there are tons of beautiful fruit trees and plants all around, we don't really have a spot to grow anything of our own.  We do have some basil plants that grow in a junk-yard sort of spot in the yard (seriously, hilarious).  We asked our landlord if she would plant our little basil plants in the yard when we first moved in and she planted them right beside some tires, cinder blocks, and old electric wires... So weird.

1. My all time favorite wine, Broadbent Vinho Verde.  It's really light and refreshing, and it's inexpensive, too!  It was also a top pick in the San Francisco Chronicle, which described it as "deliciously lively and food friendly" and it was one of Bon Appetit's top picks of 2008.  Plus the bottle is pretty.
2. Basil rooting in our kitchen - details and instructions below.
3. A rose I bought mainly for the cool bottle. Available in Dominica, and not bad.
4. Junk yard herb garden.
5. Our basil plants, in fancy pots, and complete with a lizard.

Did you know that if you keep basil clippings in a jar or vase with water for a week or two, they will begin to root?  And then you can plant the basil plants in a pot or in your garden!

How to Root Basil 

• Take some basil and clip off any tough, thick stems (just trim them a little so they aren't too thick and are more like twigs).  

• Fill a vase or jar with enough water so that an inch or two of the basil stems are submerged.  

• Keep it in a cool place, out of direct sunlight (but not in the fridge).  

• Change the water daily, and pinch off any dead leaves from the plant.  

• After a week or two, your basil will start to grow some roots and once it does it's ready to plant! 

Have a great Monday!