Arugula Salad with Pistachios |
|
| 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar |
| 1/4 cup olive oil |
| 3 bunches of arugula, torn into bite size pieces |
| 1/3 cup shelled husky pistachios, coarsely chopped |
| Sea Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste |
Combine vinegar, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in oil in thin stream. Adjust seasoning. Toss vinaigrette with arugula in medium bowl.
Divide among plates. Sprinkle with pistachio nuts and serve.
| 2 cups Balsamic Vinegar |
| 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary finely chopped |
| 1 cup water |
| 1/2 cups sugar |
| 2 whole pears, endspara_mInlinetrimmed, peeled and cut in half |
In a medium size saucepan, bring all ingredients (except pears) to a boil over medium – high heat. Reduce heat to medium, add pears and add enough water just to cover. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes or until pears are tender, turning every few minutes.
Remove from stove and allow pears to cool in poaching liquid.
When cool, core and slice.
Serve with a little of the poaching liquid drizzled over the sliced pears arranged on a plate with a rosemary sprig.
The poaching liquid can be kept refrigerated and used again.
3/4 cup sugar 1/2 cup glace cherries
1 tsp. Minced, fresh lemon verbena leaves 1/4 cup chopped candied citrus peel
3/4 cup unsalted butter 1 cup currants
3 eggs beaten 1/2 cup white raisins
1 cup unbleached white flour 1 lb. Almond paste
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg 1 egg, beaten for browning the cake’s top
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon Milk for thinning
Optional: red and white carnations for decorating the top
Preheat the oven to 300° F.
In mini-food processor, blend sugar and lemon verbena until very fine. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs slowly. Fold in the flour and spices. Add the fruit and fold in. Add a little milk if the batter is too stiff. Butter and dust with flour a 7-inch round cake pan. Roll a third of the almond paste into a circle the size of the cake pan. Spoon half of the cake batter into the cake pan. Place the almond paste circle on top of the cake mixture. Then add the rest of the cake batter. Bake for about 2 hours, or until brown and firm. (Check after an hour; if the top is getting too brown, cover with foil.) Cool the cake for ten minutes and turn it out onto a cake rack. Let cool completely. Roll half of the remaining almond paste into an 8-inch circle. Place the circle on top of the cake and crimp the edges to create a scalloped edging. Use a sharp knife to make a cross pattern on the almond paste. Shape the remaining paste into 11 balls (tradition says that these represent the 11 apostles – minus Judas). Brush the cake top with the remaining beaten egg and then place the balls around the outside edge. Brush the tops of the balls with the rest of the egg. Brown the cake quickly under the broiler until golden. Decorate the top with carnations.
Sage Pesto
|
\
 |
Combine the sage, parsley, garlic, cheese, and nuts in a food processor. Process to mix. With the food processor running, slowly add the oil. Season to taste with the salt and pepper. Put in bowl and serve with crackers, bread and small pieces of toast. |
Chile-Peach Pesto |
In a food processor, grind the basil, garlic, peaches, cheese, rosemary and Chile While machine is running, slowly add the oil. Add pecans and pulse briefly. We love to stuff this under the skin of chicken breasts, or use in a cheese torta with cinnamon basil sprigs. |
 |
Is it oregano or marjoramtheir appearance, growth, and use, are so similar. Until recently, oregano was called wild marjoram and marjoram Origanum marjorana. Author Steven Foster, Herbal Bounty, claims oregano “more properly refers to flavor rather than a particular plant.” Susan Belsinger and Carolyn Dille, Cooking with Herbs, identify its flavor as spicier than marjoram, with hints of clover and balsam. Seed catalogs list culinary oregano as Oregano heracleotium, O. vulare, and O. onites. Even after finding one that pleases your palate, growing and cooking with oregano can, like Columbus go wrong. |
| One of the most important conditions for cultivating healthy oregano is hot, dry weather; the herb grown in shadier, cooler locations loses much of its flavor and fragrance. Fresh leaves are green with a yellowish tinge, more oval, pointed, and larger than marjoram’s, and flower from white to pink. In the kitchen, most of oregano’s spicy clover-like taste is lost the moment it is heated. Used with a last-minute gentle touch, oregano marries well with basil and garlic to the delight of tomato, eggplant and zucchini, beef, chicken, pasta and cheese dishes. |
It’s likely that most people don’t know that even in death, herbs offer so much symbolism to turn despair into hope.
My father passed away earlier this week and, like so many people, my family’s grief with losing a loved one is at odds with the relief we feel because the loved one is no longer suffering. Roy Gene Varney struggled for more than 15 years with Parkinson’s disease, and the last few years with dementia. We have many memories of a man who remained true to his conviction that life was still worth living.
In my own herb garden, I am using a little symbolism here and there to cope. To begin with, here’s rosemary – for remembrance of my father and all the other people we love but are no longer with us.
Herbs, health and happiness, Bill Varney
Basil: Best wishes, warm friendship
Bay: Honor, unchanging affections
Chamomile: Patience, meekness
Eucalyptus: Openness, trust
Geranium: Comfort, consolation
Holly: Foresight
Lavender: Distrust
Lemon Balm: Sympathy
Lemon Verbena: Purity
Marjoram: Happiness, joy
Mint: Wisdom
Myrtle: First declaration of love
Narcissus: Egotism, conceit
Rose: Love
Rosemary: Remembrance
Sage: Esteem, friendship
Thyme: Activity
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.”
–Robert Louis Stevenson
 Hardy Annual Height: 18″ – 36″ tall Root: Fibrous, shallow Stem: Hairy, hollow, succulent, branching Leaf: Oval, pointed, alternate, roughly, hairy, 4″ long and 1-1/2″ wide Flower: Five intensely blue star shaped petals, prominent purple stamen column, flower to 1″ wide in drooping clusters. Blooms April through October Seed: Black |
Borage, Borago officinalis
Borage is a beautiful plant that has had a reputation for making men (and presumably women) merry, since the days of the early Greeks. Maybe the Greek proven”I Borage, bring always courage” was the basis of a curious tradition in the days of the Crusades. As the crusaders marched off to battle, their sweethearts bid them adieu by placing the star-shaped blossom of the borage in the wine cup. They went forth full of courage and vigor. During the Middle Ages, borage flowers were embroidered on scarves and presented to warriors before battle as an emblem of courage. Taken as a tonic by competitors before tournaments and jousts in England, borage was believed to exhilarate the mind. Its popular names are indicative of it other attributes: herb of gladness, cool tankard, bee bread, and burrage. |
Plants grow up to 3 feet high. Gray-green leaves are covered with bristly whitish hairs that can reach to 6 inches long. During summer, lovely blue, star-shaped flowers droop downward. Foliage and flowers do not emit a fragrance but produce a fresh, cucumber like flavor.
Seeds are large and easy to sow in place. Accepts any well-drained soil. After seedlings are up and growing keep on the dry side; over-watering will kill the plants. Borage will grow in sun or partial shade and self sows. Allow at least two feet off space between neighboring plants. Once you plant borage, you’ll likely have volunteer seedlings for years to come.
Good companion plant with tomatoes, and strawberries, repelling tomato worms. Honeybees are attracted to the flowers, which help increase pollination of surrounding plants.
In the kitchen, tender young leaves and stems are chopped and added to green salads, spreads, and fruit and wine drinks, imparting a cool cucumber flavor. Scrape long hairs from large stems and chop before adding to salads or steeping in beverages.
Floating borage flowers in punch bowls and summer drinks is a tradition, and they are especially striking frozen in ice cubes. For an unusual, striking cake decoration, dip borage flowers in egg white, coat with sugar and dry.
CAUTION: Borage is high in potassium and calcium. However, when consumed in large quantities over a long period of time, it can cause liver damage. Use in moderation.
Cucumber flavored juicy leaves in fruit cups, summer punches, fruit drinks, salads, garnishes; candied flowers for confectionery and cake decoration. Can be used as a spinach substitute, is rich in calcium and potassium.
Leaves for poultices, diuretic; an infusion of the leaves for coughs, the whole plant contains mucilage which gives it its demulcent quality.
5 large cloves garlic
1 1/2 t olive oil
1/8 t orange oil
pinch of cayenne
freshly ground pepper to taste
2 T chopped basil
15 plum tomatoes, cored and halved lengthwise
1/2 t fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 t salt
2 T chopped Italian parsley
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Lightly coat aluminum foil with vegetable spray, wrap garlic cloves and roast for 10 minutes. Leave garlic wrapped while roasting tomatoes, then peel. Lightly coat baking sheet with vegetable spray ad place the tomatoes on it cut side down. Roast until soft and slightly browned, about 20 minutes. Place tomatoes in a food processor with the olive oil, orange oil, garlic, lemon juice, cayenne, salt and pepper Chop briefly. Place in serving bowl and stir in parsley and basil.
Yield 2 cups.
Minted Melon Potion: The Arabs have always believed that mint increases virility, and modern herbalists prescribe it for cases of impotence and decreased libido. Whether added to a glass of ice water or a tub of bath water, peppermint supplies pick-me-up vigor!
TWO 2-1/2 pound ripe cantaloupes
5 cups of cold water
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons superfine sugar
1/4 cup peppermint, finely minced
Peppermint sprigs and a few edible flowers to garnish
Ice cubes
Cut each melon in half. Scoop out and discard seeds, Remove the rind and cut melon into 1 inch cubes. In a blender, blend half the melon with 1/2 cup water and half of the peppermint until smooth. Repeat with the remaining melon, 1/2 cup water and rest of the peppermint. Transfer the puree into a large pitcher and add the 4 cups of water and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Pour into glasses filled with ice. Garnish with peppermint sprig and edible flower blossom. Makes 12 cups. Other fruits such as watermelon, honeydew or strawberries can be substituted for cantaloupe.
As for the garden mint, the very smell of it alone recovers and refreshes our spirits, as the taste stirs up our appetite for meat. — Pliny the Elder 23-79
Cooling Peppermint Drink for HOT Weather
Make a weak peppermint tea using 1/2 oz. fresh peppermint and 1 pt. water. Add the juice of one lemon. Cool in the refrigerator, add ice and a sprig of fresh peppermint.
Drink freely to avoid the effects of the heat.