3 Ways To Use Up An Abundance Of Herbs From Your Garden
Having a garden for fresh vegetables, fruit and even herbs is something that everybody should try to have. Even when you are short on space there is always room to plan for a small container tomato plant or a box of herbs. One issue with having a garden, even a small one, is that you have an abundance of produce that takes some creativity to use up.
The same with herbs. When you live a busy lifestyle, you may be faced with far too many herbs to know what to do with. The trick is to have a lot of ways to use these herbs that goes beyond just adding them to a pasta sauce.
In this article, we will go over some creative ways to use up the herbs that you have.
1 – Bake with them
There are so many recipes for herbs from sweet to savory that you can use quite a load of them in a short amount of time. For instance, there is nothing better than a warm biscuit baked with fresh herbs like chives or marjoram. If you are trying to live gluten free, then you can always add them to a gluten free biscuits mix.
There are also lots of breads that you slip some herbs into for something different. Olives and basil for instance make an excellent loaf. Or, try rosemary for an extra herbal kick.
There are also lots of ways to bake herbs into sweet offerings. For instance, a lavender and lemon curd tart would be a nice treat in the summer. Berries and herbs are becoming a hot and trendy combination so a rosemary and raspberry cobbler would be an ideal way to go about this.
2 – Dry them
Herbs can dry very well and be used over the course of the year. Drying them could not be easier so when you face a lot of herbs then drying them is the way to go. Some herbs, like oregano and marjoram are actually much tastier and intense when dried so these are the perfect candidates for drying.
To dry them in bulk and quickly, you can spread the herbs on a baking sheet and put them in the oven at the lowest temperature possible. Something around 100°F is best to dry them as you don’t want to cook them.
If you aren’t in a rush, then hanging them outside in the sun will do it naturally.
3 – Make pesto
Most people are familiar with that luscious sauce from Genoa called pesto alla genovese. What fewer people realize is that it is just one version of pesto. You can make a pesto with just about any herb and combination of oil, cheese and nuts.
For instance, parsley can make a wonderful pesto for seafood when you add lemon, olive oil, and pine nuts. Also, rosemary olives and walnuts make a wonderful combination.
The list is limited only by your imagination. The best part is how simple and quick it is to make. Just throw it all in a blender and let it go for about 30 seconds.
