The news story about the Swiss Spaghetti Harvest is one of the best April Fool’s pranks on record. The BBC aired the feature as a serious television report in 1957 and ran footage of people gathering long strands of spaghetti from trees.
When viewers called to ask how they could grow spaghetti, they were told to “place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best.”
Now spaghetti gardens can grow just about anywhere. No joke.
It’s easy to plant your own spaghetti garden by selecting a sunny spot in your yard, tilling the soil, adding organic material and planting some spaghetti squash. Bush varieties, like “Hasta La Pasta,” are perfect for smaller spaces.
Italian paste tomatoes, like red pear or Roma, are easy to grow and will make a flavorful garden-fresh tomato sauce. Depending on the size of your garden, plant several of each variety, add one or two sweet bell pepper plants, several kinds of garlic, a few onions and sprinkle in some parsley, oregano and basil plants.
Because tomatoes and peppers are warm-season vegetables, wait to plant until the garden soil has warmed and night-time temperatures are a reliable 55 degrees.
Mulch the garden with thin layers of dried grass clippings — only those that haven’t been treated with chemicals, please — and keep it moist throughout the growing season.
Planting a spaghetti garden is fun and it also encourages healthier plants. Strong-smelling plants, like garlic and onions, help protect tender greens because they confuse insect pests trying to locate their food by smell.
Flavors can also be improved when companion plants are placed close together; that’s why the taste of tomatoes improves whenever basil is planted nearby. An added advantage is the herb also repels flies and mosquitoes.
The spaghetti garden’s ingredients are so versatile they can be used to make bruschetta, added to an antipasto plate or simmered into soups and sauces.
Read more of Front Range gardener Jodi Torpey’s work at her website and blog at .
Simple Tomato Sauce for Pasta
This simply delicious recipe is adapted from the “Vegetarian Epicure,” by Anna Thomas. Serves 4 to 6. We’ve suggested serving the sauce over roasted spaghetti squash, but you can use it over the cooked pasta of your choice.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 /2
onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, put through a press
1 pound Italian paste tomatoes, peeled
1/4 cup green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons oregano, chopped
1/4 cup basil, chopped
salt
black pepper
red wine
1 spaghetti squash
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
Heat the olive oil in a skillet and saute the onion and garlic in it for several minutes. Put the peeled tomatoes and bell pepper in a blender and whirl at high speed for about 1 minute. Pour the resulting liquid into the skillet. Add oregano, basil, salt and black pepper.
Allow the sauce to simmer gently for at least 30 minutes, but the longer the better. Stir it occasionally, and add water if it cooks down too much. You might also add a few tablespoons of red wine.
While the sauce is cooking, cut spaghetti squash in half length-wise, remove seeds and place cut side down on a cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until flesh is soft. Cool slightly and scrape flesh from the skin, separating the strands with a fork. Pour sauce over the spaghetti squash, sprinkle with parsley and grated Parmesan cheese, and serve with warm crusty bread.
