Spice or Herb of the Week. . .

I picked basil for this week. I love basil. I especially love it fresh. I know that is hard to do at this time of year. But, even dried basil is good in most recipes. I am a big fan of fresh herbs. I try to grow my own every year. I do pretty good for a novice. My mother always had a garden and fresh produce and it was always so much fun to go to the garden and pick fresh corn, strawberries, sweet peas, zucchini, yellow squash, beans and much more. I do not garden to that magnitude but I do small things. My sister helped me get started with spinach. That is really good fresh. It is so much sweeter than anything you buy in the store.

Back to my basil. I either buy a small pot at Lowes or I buy seeds and do my own. When it gets cold I bring them in and keep them in my kitchen. The one I brought in this year just died. So I am ready to get started again. This warm weather we have had has made me long for my fresh herbs. I use basil in all sorts of recipes. I love it in anything that has a tomato base. The basil just brings out the flavor of the tomatoes. You can even use it in mexican dishes too.

Now if you do not have fresh basil you can use dried basil. It is important when you use dried herbs to rub them between your fingers as you are adding them to your dish. This bruises the herb and allows the oils to be released in your food. If you don't believe me take some dried herb; oregano, basil, or cilantro and smell it. If you just take it out of the bottle it will have a little aroma but if you rub it between your fingers you will really get a boost of aroma.
So this Spring try your luck at growing fresh herbs. It is really not that hard.

Until we eat again. . .