My favorite way to prepare garlic scapes is to stir fry them.And, as far as I am concerned, their perfect partner in the wok is spiced dry tofu.Here’s why: the scapes have the same wonderful crisp but tender texture that very young green beans have, and are blessed with a similar verdant grassy flavor scented strongly with the divine aroma of garlic.

This year, I planted a whiskey barrel with Thai chilies and basil; eight starts of Thai Dragon chilies, a dozen of Siam Queen basil. These relatively few plants kept us in fresh Thai ingredients for the entire summer and early fall. The rainy early summer resulted in lush growth but the first chilies were fairly mild