I'm still fairly new to gardening, but I have, so far always planted basil next to tomatoes. For tomatoes, I only plant Brandywines. Personally, I think they are the best beefsteak tomatoes and I actually live in the Brandywine area of PA, so it seems kinda sacrilegious not to, but I digress. I plant basil and tomatoes in a 2 to 3 ratio. That means a lot of basil, yes, but my pesto is a favorite of my family and friends so I make it a lot. The tomatoes do shield the basil a bit, but not overly. Brandywines are, like all beefsteaks, indeterminate, so they don't have the sprawling shoots and wide shade cover of your bush tomatoes -- and I'm very anal about pinching off suckers as soon as I see them. So, my tomatoes are tall any aery and my basils get plenty of light. Basil generally likes roughly the same watering as tomatoes, if a bit drier. Tomatoes are more temperamental about dry spells due to the blossom end rot, so I try to keep the soil nice and moist. I've never noticed my basil getting too wet. Even if, on average, the soil may be wetter than basil would ideally prefer (which I'm not saying is the case), the tomatoes are thirsty enough that over-watering is not a big problem, especially since my beds are raised and have decent drainage. I have yet to notice any significant insect problems on my tomatoes. Although I don't know it for a fact, basil could help. Basil, being a mint, is very pungent and if evolutionary biology has taught as anything it is that plants have strong smells for one of two reasons -- to attract animals (for fertilization) or repel them. In basil's case, regarding insects, I suspect the latter. Unfortunately for my tomatoes, while the basil doesn't seem to get eaten by vermin, they don't seem to keep the vermin away from my tomatoes, either. This year, I'm putting in a bit better barrier protection and planting lots of garlic and onion in my spacer rows. Might help, probably cannot hurt.

I got the original recipe here: http://vegan-magic.blogspot.com/2012/06/bean-and-lentil-loaf-low-fat-gluten.html where credit is given to Anne Sheasby's book "High fibre cooking". Here is the version I did tonight, written as for a non-cook as much as possible: Food Processor, scale, large mixing bowl, strainer or slotted spoon, two pots, mixing bowl, measuring cups and spoons, wooden spoon or other cooking spoon, 9" loaf pan (mine is shiny aluminum), prep bowls, cutting board and knife, pastry brush (preferably silicone) Dry Garbanzo beans, about 200 g cooked weight Dry beans (black eyed peas tonight, white or black beans another time), about 200 g cooked weight 400 g cooked weight dried green lentils 1 onion, about the size of a fist, chopped 2 stalks of celery, chopped 1 large or 4 small cloves of garlic, squished and chopped or pressed Oil for sauteing (I use Extra Light Olive Oil) Carrots, about 8 peeled baby or one large 1/2 c. walnut pieces 1/2 c. almond meal 2 TBSP tapioca starch 2 TBSP ground flax seeds 1/2 cup crumbs (better idea than rice) 3-4-ish TBSP Simply Heinz tomato ketchup (if you're picky--any would do), plus more for brushing on later Be generous on the measures with the spices. Not heaping, but a little rondure. :) 1 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp ground coriander 1/2 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp chipotle powder 1 tsp smoked Spanish paprika 1/2 tsp black pepper, not too fine 1/2 tsp Morton's table salt (I say go for the iodine when cooking because who wants goiter?) 1 very very generous tsp dried basil 1 tsp dried thyme Day before: Rinse and sort beans, well. Put beans in a heavy pot, cover with water, bring briefly to a boil and let cool, then put in fridge overnight. Day of:Pour off some of the bean water until it's only about a third of the way up. Bring to a moving simmer and cook the beans through to tender. Should take about the time it takes for the water to boil off/be absorbed. About 20 minutes. Add back more bean water if needed. Rinse and sort lentils, well. Cook about a cup of lentils to 3-4 cups of water. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes until they puff up. Saute onions and celery. When the onions start going transparent, add the garlic. Continue to cook until soft but not carmelized (brown). Put the walnut pieces in the food processor and pulse until small. Add the almond meal and pulse a few more times to mix. Put nut mixture in mixing bowl. Put carrots in food processor and pulse until small but not minced and loosing their water. Add to mixing bowl. Add the crumbs to the mixing bowl. Measure and combine in a prep bowl: seasonings, spices, herbs, flaxseed and tapioca (i.e., the small amounts of dry stuff). Mix well with a fork. Set oven to 350 degrees F. Drain both the beans and lentils. Measure out 400 grams of the lentils and 400 grams of the beans. Put equal portions in the food processor with a portion of the sauteed mixture equal to the proportion of the beans/lentils. That is, if you're putting in a third of the beans and a third of the lentils, use a third of the sauteed vegetables. Turn on the FP and let it run until a paste develops. Scrape down the sides once or twice. It's done when looking from the top (lid off) it seems well blended and doesn't have big pieces of anything showing. About the texture of stiff hummus. Empty into mixing bowl and repeat until done. Mix the contents of the bowl with your wooden spoon until everything is well distributed. Add the ketchup, and mix. Pour the spice mixture all around the bowl so that it's well spread out, and mix bringing the outside edges in, until all the spice mix is well mixed in and distributed. If you think it needs more color, add another squirt of ketchup. Prepare the loaf pan by generously oiling it (or spray oil). Not enough oil for puddles, but so there's lots on the sides and bottom. Don't do this ahead or the oil will all run down. The oil is for making the crust as much as keeping the loaf from sticking. Put the bean mixture in the pan and smooth the top. Try to get the sides not to stick up so they won't burn. Place in the middle of a 350 degree oven on convection/bake if you have it, or else convection or bake. Set the timer for 45 minutes. If the top is at all dry looking, use your pastry brush to cover it with a thin layer of ketchup. Bake a further 10-15 minutes. When it's ready the edges will just be getting dark and will be pulling away from the sides of the pan. Remove from oven and put on a rack. Let it cool and rest for at least 20 minutes. When the pan's edges are cool enough to touch, place your plate over the pan, grab the edges of both and invert. Garnish as you please. A scalloped or serrated knife will probably cut the cleanest, or choose a thin blade. Just don't press down so hard it squishes. Since I wasn't having company, I went for the practical and unmolded my loaf onto the top of a long Ziploc container. That made it easy to just put the container over the loaf for storage in the fridge. Edit: Left off the lentils from the ingredients. This post was edited by plllog on Tue, May 6, 14 at 1:10

This makes 2.5 cups and has 1 tsp. olive oil. I haven't tried it, it's from Moosewood Restaurant Lowfat Favorites Cookbook. Greek Lima Bean dip (I'll bet you could use canelinni or a mix including garbanzos) 3 cups cooked lima beans (two 15 oz. cans, drained and liquid reserved) 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed 1/4 cup lemon juice 2 TBLSP fresh dill (I would probably use 2 tsp. dried) 1 TBLSP chopped fresh mint (or 1 tsp. dried, I have tons from the garden last year) 1 tsp. olive oil 1/3 cup minced red onions salt and ground black pepper to taste In a blender or food processor, puree the limas, garlic, lemon, dill and mint. If needed, add about 1/4 cup of the reserved bean liquid to aid in pureeing. Add the olive oil and process until smooth and creamy. Fold in the red onions by hand and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve at room temperature or chill for at least an hour.

CUCUMBER TOMATO SALAD Diabetic Exchanges Serves: 14Â.. Plan aheadÂneeds to refrigerate for atleast 1 hour. 2 large cucumbers, peeled and diced 2 large tomatoes, diced 1 medium green pepper 1 medium onion, diced 1 bottle (8 oz.) fat-free Italian salad dressing Sugar substitute equivalent to 2 tsp. sugar In a bowl, combine the first 4 ingredients. Combine salad dressing and sugar substitute; pour over vegetables. Refrigerate for atleast 1 hour. Serve with a slotted spoon. Nutritional Analysis: One 1/2-cup serving equals: 29 caloriesÂ0 fatÂ0 cholesterolÂ230 mg sodiumÂ6 gm carbohydrateÂ1 gm fiberÂ1 gm protein ++++ Exchanges: 1 vegetable