If you have a herb garden, you certainly want to incorporate them into your dishes as often as you can, but you may already be running out of ideas.
Don’t worry, as Blossom and Broom shares some creative ways to use your favorite herbs in your cooking:
Make Your Pesto
Choose from basil, parsley, cilantro, and other herbs when making a fresh garden pesto. Perfect for pasta or even as a pizza topping. You can even make a batch of pesto and then freeze it in single servings.
Brew Your Own Tea
Make your own herbal tea by brewing different combinations of your favorite herbs. Add dried fruit, citrus rinds, or even edible flowers for more flavor..
Make a Fresh Herb-Flavored Butter
Mix different combinations of fresh herbs with unsalted butter. Any of your favorite herbs will work depending on the dish you’re making.
Freeze Some Mint Iced Tea Cubes
When you make iced tea, make extra. Add mint to your tea and then freeze the excess to use in ice cubes in your next iced tea. The cubes will keep the tea chilled without watering it down.
Make Your Own Herbal Rub
If you like your meats on the grill or barbecued, try making your own herbal rub with whatever herbs are growing in your garden. Try a mixture of rosemary, sage, and garlic.
Add a Fresh Herbal Flair to Lemonade
Add a little fresh rosemary, lemon verbena, or thyme to make your herbal lemonade. You could even add some cucumber slices to the mix.
Add Some to Your Favorite Dessert
Try adding mint to your lemon pudding or chocolate mousse, or add peppermint to your brownies or cupcakes. You can also add other herbs like lavender or lemon verbena to your favorite chocolate desserts.
Make Some Herb Salts
Sprinkle on your own homemade herb salts for a special finishing touch on your grilled chicken or steaks. You can make them out of almost any herbs growing in your garden.
You can use any combination of herbs and make as many herbs as you want so it’s really up to you what you make.
Try Different Herbs wIth Your Favorite Fish
Herbs are so versatile that you can use them with almost any food, including fish. Some of the most popular herbs for cooking fish include dill, sage, rosemary, and basil.
A few other herbs that have an affinity for fish are tarragon, chervil, and parsley.
Use Your Fresh Herbs to Add Depth to Soups
Herbs add a freshness that can be incorporated into any soup. Experiment with different combinations of herbs to see what flavors you like.
Add Some Oregano to Your Marinara Sauce
Oregano is a Mediterranean herb that works well in pasta sauces. Heat a large pot of marinara sauce, sprinkle oregano over the top of the sauce, and then let the sauce cool to room temperature.
Conclusion
As you can see, herbs and spices are important ingredients in cooking. In fact, they are considered essential in many recipes, so knowing how to use them will help you improve your cooking skills. Knowing the differences in their flavors will also help you understand which herbs go perfectly with what you’re cooking.
Once you figure out what you like, you can even start growing some specific herbs just for these specific purposes. Blossom and Broom has some articles that can help you if you want to grow your own food.
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