Celebrating Herbal Vinegar
June 25, 2010
June 16th was National Vinegar Day.
I thought that was a great excuse to write about making herbal vinegars. They can only be done with fresh ingredients and this is the perfect time of year to use fresh herbs and make something that you can use now or save for winter when you want a fresh taste.Herbal Vinegar is the simplest and best way to capture the flavor of fresh herbs.
Create herbal vinegar by harvesting and washing a fist full of fresh herbs. Choose your favorite, but Basils, especially colored basil, thyme, lemon herbs and chives all make great tasting vinegar.Lay the herbs out to air dry after washing.Once they are dry place them in a glass jar and bruise them with the handle of a wooden spoon. Cover them with distilled white or white wine vinegar that you have warmed in the microwave on high for about 2 minutes. Seal the jar with a non-reactive (plastic) lid and let sit for at least two weeks shaking daily.
Strain and rebottle the herbs and use to make your favorite marinade or dressing.
Try this example:
Lemon-Basil Marinade
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Tags:
basil, chives, cucumbers, dressing, herbal vinegar, lemon, preserving herbs, thyme
Posted at: 06:04 PM | 1 Comment | Add Comment | Permalink
Mulching your garden
June 8, 2010
As some readers may know, I work full-time in addition to running my herb business. I grow my herbs on a back acre of a commercial property, so it is not just a quick walk out my back door to pluck or weed herbs. As a result I have carefully prepared the soil in my 3/4 acre herb garden so that weeding is a task, not a chore. I maintain this unattended garden by mulching. Since I cannot water this garden with anything other than mother nature's rain, I also use the mulch to hold moisture.
For me mulching is part of the annual ritual, but when I started I spent a couple years augmenting the soil by tilling in compost and sand. I worked these down into the soil before any planting was done, and did so even around the perennials afterward. This created a very loamy and soft soil, so pulling the weeds that sprout is not difficult. Just doing this cuts weeding time by half. If you don't have to struggle to get the weeds out, you can linger over the plants instead.
You should mulch your garden even if it is right outside your back door because m
ulching...
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Tags:
backyard patch, compost, gardening, herbs, mulching, sand
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Monthly To DO list JUNE
June 4, 2010
Need a push to get started in your garden. Here is a to do list for you! Zone 4 - Plant seedlings of warm-season annuals and vegetables
- Sow seed of fast-growing, heat-loving herbs, vegetables (basil, squash, melons) and flowers (nasturtiums, zinnias) directly in ground
- Thin out small green fruits on apple, peach and plum trees to one every 6 inches on the branch
- Dust potato plants to prevent infestations of potato beetle
- Set up trellises to support pole beans, morning glories and cucumbers
- Remove newest shoots from geranium plants to encourage fuller plants
- Plant new lawns and fertilize and aerate established lawns
- Plant Container roses, shrubs and trees in well-amended soil
- Divide and transplant spring-flowering perennials that have finished blooming
- Protect cole crops (cabbage, broccoli, kale) from egg-laying cabbage white butterflies with insect-barrier cloth
- Weed asparagus and strawberry beds
- Remove new flower buds from chrysanthemums and carnations to coax bigger blooms
If Zone 4 is not your zone, then check out where I got this list for your zone:
http://www.backyardgardener.com/article/zonejun01.html
Not sure of your zone? I found this awesome list from the Arbor Day Foundation, where you can put in your zip code and it will tell you...
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Tags:
backyard patch, gardening, herbs
Posted at: 02:41 PM | 0 Comments | Add Comment | Permalink
Pickle Week!
June 2, 2010
I found out after the fact that in England there is a week (actually 10 days) called Pickle Week. Among the many things I found searching the website about National Pickle Week was this recipe. I liked it because you make the dishes and the salad. Besides who does not love a salad on a long hot day! Try this one!
Dilly Black Bean Cabbage Salad in Tortilla Baskets
This cabbage salad will stand out from all the others at a potluck picnic. For the baskets:
1 (10-count) package yellow or white corn tortillas
¼ cup olive oil
¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon dried dill leaves
¨û teaspoon garlic powder
3 to 4 cups thinly sliced cabbage
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
½ cup thinly sliced red onion
3 Zingers spears, cut into matchsticks
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
½ cup sour cream
¼ cup pickle juice from jar of Zingers
1 tablespoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantroTo make the Tortilla Baskets, warm the tortillas in the microwave for 20 seconds to soften. Use kitchen scissors to cut each tortilla from outer edge just to...
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Tags:
backyard patch, black beans, cabbage, herbs, pickles, recipe, salad
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