The Italian Kitchen Garden

Reader Contribution by Karen Newcomb
Published on May 3, 2013
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The hallmarks of Italian cooking–appealing flavors, fresh ingredients, and robust seasonings–have made it America’s favorite cuisine.  No where is the connection between garden and plate more clearly drawn than in Italy.  Italian cooks not only use a lot of daily pasta with light sauces, but also are clever in the use of beans, broccoli, eggplant, artichokes, radicchio, greens, and many other vegetables.  

The vegetables I’ve selected are ethnic Italian varieties.  Why not brag about that spaghetti sauce you’ve made?   Be inventive when making pizza.   Show off a platter of raw vegetables or grill some coarse Italian country bread, rub it with a clove of fresh garlic, brush with a fine olive oil, rub a fresh tomato over it, and sprinkle with Italian sea salt.  I can only list one of each vegetable due to blog space, but to get a list of Italian varieties visit:  www.postagestampvegetablegardening.com  The Italian Inspired Kitchen Garden. 

ARTICHOKE

Violetto de Chioggia 85 days.  Nearly spineless purple artichoke.  Italian heirloom.  Picked small when they have no choke, typical of older heirloom artichokes.  Source:  ANN TERR

BEAN (pole)

Meraviglia Venezia (Miracle of Venice)  A climbing yellow Roma.  Flat beans grow up to 10″ long with no strings and great flavor.  Source:  SEE

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