Vandergrift, Pennsylvania when I grew up had a decidedly Italian presence. It was even more so when my parents were kids, and probably even more when my grandparents settled there, but still, when I was young, Vandergrift was pretty Italian. Even to this day they have the Festa di Italiana once a year, so the presence hasn’t completely faded. But I digress…

vegetablesThere were a lot of things I looked forward to in the summer, but one thing I hated as a kid. Gardening. There would be weeding and planting and peat-mossing. And then the picking. And picking. And picking.

Italians plant everything. We have huge gardens. We have to have parsley and basil, those herbs are staples, and they will take over your garden in a nanosecond if you aren’t vigilant. Of course we plant tomatoes.

On that rare occasion that we wanted something no one grew, we’d go to an orchard or farm and pick it ourselves. There was no reason to get bruised produce from the store when we could get what we wanted cheaper fresh from the vine. I spent many June weekends in Erie picking cherries right off the trees.

Many of my friends growing up were Italian, so they worked in their family garden, too. Everyone ate zucchini twenty-eight different ways all summer long. If you’re Italian, you know what I mean.

My friends today don’t understand. My kids barely understand. We don’t have a garden where we live, but we try to get the freshest produce we can. Meanwhile our friends and the kids’ friends are eating frozen dinners and sauce from a jar, or, even worse, just getting take out all the time. When my kids have friends for dinner, I always make sure to have a home-cooked meal instead of letting them order pizza (the pizza here isn’t great, anyway). At first my kids were mortified, but their friends loved it, and now everyone looks forward to eating here. They don’t get food like this at their homes.

Who knew fresh tomatoes were for more than sandwiches and salads?

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8 Responses

  1. Figs with anything are fabulous! Plus, they remind me of my grandfather, so of course I love them. This time of year the cantaloupes are in season, so I like them with prosciutto, arugula and a drizzle of olive oil. Add a splash of lemon juice, S&P, and you’re in business!

  2. we have zucchini blossoms all the time. my son makes them. And figs with Gorgonzola cheese! OMG!

  3. I enjoyed this Staci seeing it from your Italian perspective. “Everyone ate zucchini twenty-eight different ways all summer long” -I can totally relate but ours was primarily yellow squash.

  4. Where is Vandergrift? I live north of Pittsburgh – just moved here two years ago. My husband is a gardener and I am very versatile with tomatoes when they start coming in. I still have two jars from last year to use before we’re inundated. Once you’ve tasted the real thing – either freshed picked or canned fresh – it’s never the same again! Glad to have found you.

    • The easiest way to tell you from where you are is to take 28N and get off at the New Kensington or Freeport exits. It’s not far from there. You better use those jars soon… my dad says his tomatoes are coming in nicely and will be ready soon. Saw your blog; your garden looks great!

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