So whatever happened to the upside down tomato plants I planted on my balcony? Well, they grew huge on twice-daily waterings and once-weekly feedings, survived a couple neglectful trips out of town and have been supplying me with a steady stream of heirloom yumminess all summer, particularly the prolific Sunsugar.

The Sunsugar had a nasty leaf spot problem early on, which I treated with a bacterial spray. The woman at the nursery store showed me the organic fungicide options and said, "No one really chooses this one because it has bacteria in it. But I know it works." I felt sad for the misunderstood bacteria -- there are a lot of good bacteria in the world, you know -- so I bought it. It worked great. Yay for bacteria!

The Hollywood Farmers' Market had a tomato festival last Sunday, with free samples of maybe twenty types of tomatoes. After trying all of them, I have concluded that I like my own Black Krim tomatoes the best of all. Is it because I grew them myself? Perhaps. But they are also beautiful, with a rich, almost salty flavor. Too bad I'm lucky to harvest one every couple of weeks.

Not like the Sunsugar, which has been producing pints and pints of cherry tomatoes. Last week I used some in a simple pasta dish, which was such a big hit I made it again this week. I use the egg pappardelle noodles from Trader Joe's and basil and chives from my own plants. There's something uniquely satisfying about eating food you've grown yourself, don't you think?