An amazing L.A. welcome

A visit to this Burbank garden proved that the generosity and graciousness I experience with the elder Italian gardeners is alive and well with the next generation. Grazie mille to Luciano, Arianna and their son Liam.

Their home is a lush, green oasis in the middle of a Los Angeles suburb.

Ornamental and edible plants fill the front yard.

Vegetables are planted in the many raised beds throughout the property.

As Arianna gave a tour of the garden, she picked vegetables for our afternoon feast.

During the tour, both Arianna and Luciano shared their extensive gardening wisdom.

Italy didn’t feel very far away in this California garden.

The many fruit trees included pomegranate…

grapefruit…

plum…

Kumquat beginning to blossom

an apple tree shared by the neighbor…

and, of course, fig.

Blackberries were ready to be picked.

Arianna picked handfuls of blackberries.

Luciano shared a freshly picked strawberry.

Grapes were almost ready for harvest too.

Each raised vegetable bed was equipped with drip hoses.

The beds produced beautiful vegetables such as carrots...

and beets...

and several varieties of tomatoes.

A variety of herbs filled the garden, including rosemary…

oregano…

fennel…

sage…

mint…

and basil which Arianna used to prepare pesto for the pasta served for our lunch.

Before we ate, we were treated to a special tradition, L’Acqua di San Giovanni (St John’s water). See the video below in which Arianna explains this tradition.

It was wonderful to see the tradition being passed to the next generation.

Arianna and Luciano prepared the most amazing meal featuring many traditional, homemade dishes prepared with freshly picked fruits and vegetables from the garden.

The meal was as beautiful as it was delicious.

Fig leaves lined the fruit platter.

Imported Italian cheeses were served with Arianna's homemade fig mostarda and honey.

Fig mostarda

Arianna made two kinds of cheese from scratch.

Homemade Stracchino is on the left and the other is Caciottina Fresca.

Imported Burrata

Imported Burrata was sliced and served with garden fresh tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, and sprinkled with fresh herbs.

After serving the Burrata, Luciano used the water to nourish his garden plants. He also uses the starchy water from cooking pasta to water his plants. A great way to avoid waste and feed the garden.

A platter of cured meats included prosciutto, salame with pistachios, and mortadella.

Light and crispy taralli

Freshly baked olive bread

Luciano and Arianna gave us a lesson on how to make Pici, a pasta typical of the Tuscan region.

Their professional quality machine produced pasta with the perfect rough cut texture. This helps hold more sauce to the pasta.

The pasta was made with imported semola flour.

The pasta was hung to dry briefly before it was cooked.

Arianna made pesto with fresh basil from the garden.

The Pici was delicious!

Many thanks to Italian Garden Project supporter Michela Merlo who arranged this wonderful visit with her friends Arianna, Luciano and Liam.