Recipe: Sautéed Cherry Tomatoes with Garlic and Basil

Serving Size: 1/8 recipe; Yield: 8 serv-

ings; Calories per Serving 47
until garlic is fragrant. Off heat, stir in
the basil and remaining 1 Tb. olive oil, Vegetable Growing Guide:
Ingredients:
then serve
Garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided Source: Adapted from Allrecipes.com
Cornell Cooperative Extension Clinton and Essex Counties
2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
2 garlic cloves, minced
Garlic Facts
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil

Instructions:
Heat 1 Tb. olive oil in a 12-inch skillet Recommended
over medium-high flame until it just Varieties:
starts to smoke. Add tomatoes, and
season with salt and pepper. Saute, Soft Neck Varieties:
shaking pan frequently, until toma- • New York White
toes soften and skins just begin to
wrinkle, about 2 minutes. Stir in the • Inchelium Red
garlic and continue to shake the pan
• Kettle River Giant
Clinton County Essex County • Viola Francese
1 Sisco Street Garlic, Allium sativum, is a cool season vegetable in
6064 State Route 22, Suite #5 Midseason Varieties: the onion family. Garlic has been cultivated by humans
Plattsburgh, NY 12901 Westport, NY 12932 for over 3000 years. It is easy to grow in rich well-
• Georgia Fire drained soil with full sun and good weed control. A
518.561.7450 518.962.4810 pound of cloves can produce 7-10 pounds of garlic.
• Siverian Garlic is a perennial that is grown as an annual. It is
planted in the fall and harvesting the following sum-
• Music mer. While we usually just eat the cloves, the leaves
and flower stem (scape) are also edible. Softneck va-
• German Extra-Hardy rieties can be braided at harvest time. Stiffneck varie-
ties are the most cold-hardy of the garlics, but don’t
We’re on the Web! • Bogatry store as well as the softneck varieties. Elephant garlic
has a large bulb, but a milder flavor, is more like a leek,
http://ecgardening.cce.cornell.edu • German Red but not as hardy.

Text for this publication was written by Master Gardener Volunteer Bunny Goodwin.
2009
Cornell Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities.
Page 2 Vegetable Growing Guide: Garlic Page 3

How to Plant
Maintenance and Care
Choose a weed-free, well-drained loca-
tion. Do not plant where other onion Mulch heavily (at least 12-18
family crops (chives, leeks, onions) have inches) with leaves and cover
been grown in the past 3 years. Plant with a tarp. Cloves must be ex-
between the time of the first fall frost to posed to temperature below 65
early November. Purchase bulbs from a F or they may fail to form bulbs
garden supplier. Bulbs from the super- when planted. Remove mulch in
market may carry diseases or may have the spring, leaving just enough
been treated to prevent sprouting. to suppress weeds. Cut off the
flower stem, or scape, to help
encourage large bulb formation.
Break bulbs apart at planting time. Do not throw out the scape, in-
Keep the papery husks on. Select large stead sauté, grill, or puree into
cloves to produce the largest bulbs. pesto for a delicious garlicky
Plant with tips up, 2 inches deep, 4-6 dish.
inches apart, in rows 15-24 inches
apart.

Harvest and Storage

Harvest garlic in the summer when the tops turn yel-
lowy brown and start bending over. Garlic for kitchen
use should be stored at 32 F to eliminate chances of
Pests and Diseases sprouting or rotting.
Bulbs may rot in heavy, wet soils. Do not plant
where other onion family crops have been grown in
the past 3 years. There are few serious disease
problems. If the bottom of the plant is swollen and
spongy and the skin has lengthwise splits, your
garlic may be infected with nematodes. If so, pull
up the plants and destroy them. Do not put them
in the compost pile. Do not plant celery, garlic, on-
ions, parsley, peas, or salsify in the area for four Sources:
years.
Information for the text was taken from the 2003 Cornell Guide to Growing Fruit at Home which can be
found at www.gardening.cornell.edu/fruit/homefuit.html
Recipe was provided by Eat Smart New York. More information on this program can be obtained by call-
ing your county’s Cornell Cooperative Extension Office.