Hensley’s Seed Co.

Recipes from the Garden

Simple ways to cook what you grow. Each recipe below is built around a crop we carry, with a link to the seeds or bulbs so you can plant for next season.

More recipes in our Grower’s Library

Garlic Scape Pesto

Hardneck garlic sends up curly scapes in late spring. Snapping them off helps the bulbs size up, and the scapes make a bright, garlicky pesto. Shop garlic for fall planting.

Makes about 1 cup

  • 10–12 garlic scapes, flower buds trimmed off, cut into 1" pieces
  • 1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds, walnuts or pine nuts
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • About 1/2 cup olive oil
  • Salt to taste
  1. Pulse the scapes and nuts in a food processor until finely chopped.
  2. Add the cheese and lemon juice, then stream in the oil with the motor running until the pesto is as loose as you like.
  3. Season with salt. Toss with pasta, spread on toast or spoon over grilled vegetables.

Keep pesto in the refrigerator and use it within 4 days, or freeze it in small portions for later. Garlic mixed with oil should never be stored at room temperature.

Whole Roasted Garlic

Roasting turns sharp cloves soft, sweet and spreadable. Large-cloved porcelain types such as Music and German Extra Hardy are the easiest to squeeze out. Shop garlic.

  • 4 whole heads of garlic
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • Pinch of salt
  1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Slice the top 1/4" off each head to expose the cloves.
  2. Set the heads on a piece of foil, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and wrap loosely.
  3. Roast 40–50 minutes, until the cloves are golden and soft when pierced with a knife.
  4. Let cool a few minutes, then squeeze the cloves out onto bread, into mashed potatoes or into a vinaigrette.

Refrigerate leftovers and use within 4 days, or freeze.

Quick Pickled Radishes

A jar of crisp, pink pickles from one spring sowing. Round red or bicolor radishes work best. Shop radish seeds.

  • 1 bunch radishes (about 10–12), thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup white or cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • Optional: a few dill sprigs, a sliced garlic clove or a pinch of chile flakes
  1. Pack the sliced radishes and any extras into a clean pint jar.
  2. Warm the vinegar, water, sugar and salt in a small pan, stirring until dissolved.
  3. Pour the brine over the radishes, let cool, cover and refrigerate. They are ready to eat in about an hour.

These are refrigerator pickles, not canned. Keep them cold and eat within 2 weeks.

Blistered Cherry Tomato and Basil Pasta

A fast summer supper for the weeks when the cherry tomato plants won’t stop. Shop cherry tomato seeds · Shop Genovese basil seeds.

Serves 4

  • 12 oz spaghetti or other pasta
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 cups cherry tomatoes
  • 3 cloves garlic, sliced
  • A large handful of basil leaves, torn
  • Salt, pepper and grated Parmesan
  1. Cook the pasta in well-salted water. Save 1/2 cup of the cooking water before draining.
  2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tomatoes and cook, shaking the pan, until they blister and start to burst, 6–8 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, pressing some tomatoes to release their juice.
  4. Toss in the pasta with a splash of the cooking water, then the basil. Season and finish with Parmesan.

Maple-Roasted Winter Squash Wedges

Delicata, acorn and kabocha squash all roast well, and delicata skin is tender enough to eat. Shop winter squash seeds.

  • 1 medium winter squash (about 2 lb)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • Pinch of chile flakes or smoked paprika
  1. Heat the oven to 425°F. Halve the squash, scoop out the seeds and cut it into 1" wedges.
  2. Toss with oil, maple syrup, salt and spice, and spread in one layer on a sheet pan.
  3. Roast 25–35 minutes, turning once, until tender and browned at the edges.

Have a favorite way to cook something you grew from our seeds? Send it to us. We may share it here.