This past summer has been my first year growing a herb garden and I’ve dried a lot of herbs. Without more knowledge though, of what to do with them, I fear a lot would have gone to waste. So when a community education class came up called, a Spice of Life, I couldn’t wait to go. The class has been taught by a very knowledgeable lady from our county’s herb society.
I thought you might want to know some of the things I have learned about herbs.
Did you know?
- Herbs only have a shelf life of one year. After that the flavor is just not as good. Some in our class confessed that they needed to take a trip to the compost bin.
- Freezing your herbs is better than drying them: If you have the freezer space, freeze your herbs because it’s easier to do and you can use them the same as fresh.
- You should add your herbs the last 20-30 minutes of cooking because they lose their flavor with longer cooking. I am definitely guilty of this one.
- Wrapped in wet paper towel, fresh herbs will last in the refrigerator about a week.
The instructor passed around many herbs for us to look at that I never thought about growing, but will next year. The lemon thyme had just an unbelievable lemon smell. You can use it in place of lemons in any recipe. Another one I would love to try would be winter savory. My herb garden is not that big so I’m really not sure how I will get another herb plant in there but I’ll give it a try.
Some more good hints:
- After you strip the dried leaves off the stems don’t throw them away, make them into fire starters. Just tie them in a bundle with raffia and keep in a basket by the fireplace. I’m sure the smell it produces will be wonderful. It kind of upsets me that I didn’t think of this about two months ago.
- Make an herbal wreath. Take a grapevine wreath and put fresh sage all around it. You can hang it in your kitchen and when the steam from cooking warms it up the aroma flows through the kitchen. I hope it’s not raining tomorrow because I know there have to be more grape vines that need to be taken down in my neighbor’s yard and I have plenty of sage.
The instructor brought in rosemary sugar cookies (I loved them) and lavender sugar cookies (they were OK).
Not everything was about cooking there were some great things you could do with herbs for you and your home. Here are some great recipes:
Lavender Bubble Bath
1 bunch of Lavender
Cean wide-necked jar with screw top (can be canning jar, pickle jar, peanut butter jar)
1 large bottle of clear shampoo (you can use cheap shampoo just has to be clear)
5 drops of Lavender oil
Mix and place jar in a sunny window for 2-3 weeks, then strain the liquid and re-bottle. (I’ll be going to our Farmer’s Market tomorrow to get the oil – it needs to be 100 percent pure essential oil)
Linen Spray
1/4 cup vodka (buy the cheapest)
8 drops of lavender or Bergamot oil
2 cups of distilled water
Let sit for a week in a sunny window. Place in empty spray bottles and spray on your linens, carpet, etc. We made this last night I can’t wait till next week to spray it on my linens.
Headache Pillow
Headaches that are caused from stress or sinus problems can be relieved by making a headache pillow.
You can make a small pillow or make one that you wrap around your neck from cloth and fill it with one of the following mixtures:
For a calming effect: Lavender and rice or buckwheat
To help open your sinuses: Rosemary and rice or buckwheat
Put in the microwave for about 1 to 1 1/2 minutes then place on your forehead or around your neck.
I have been having a lot of sinus headaches (probably due to the amount of rain we are having here), so I came home and made a neck wrap in a matter of ten minutes and it works really well.
She had a lovely idea of making these all up and putting them in baskets and giving them as gifts for Christmas. Now there is an idea.
You can visit my garden at Gardening in Lower MI.
