Fresh Herbs

Here are some hints for what to do with your fresh herbs from the garden.

We grow many fresh herbs all summer: basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, rosemary, sage, mint, and chives.

Tony makes a killer marinade for steaks, pork, and chicken with lots of chopped fresh herbs, oil, hot sauce, balsamic vinegar, and some other spices.

Another one of Tony's favorites is a Chimichurri Sauce.  It's a fresh herb and oil blend that is wonderful on grilled steaks. 

Here's his recipe:

2 cups fresh parsley or cilantro

1/4 cup fresh oregano

3 cloves garlic

1 tbsp. chives

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

salt, crushed red pepper flakes to taste

Pulse all ingredients in a food processor.  Serve as a condiment with a nice steak.

If you have lots of basil and parsley, make some Pesto for the winter.  Here's the link to my step-by-step:

Fresh Basil Pesto

I grow mint in a pot.  In the fall I cut lots of stalks off the lay them on a baking sheet to air-dry.  It usually takes a couple of weeks to dry out completely.

Then I pull off the leaves and store them in a jar to make herbal mint tea.

I do the same thing with Lemon Verbena.  It makes a lovely brewed tea hot or cold.  The leaves look like this when dried.