Harvesting and Using Herbs

by Mary Preus, author of The Northwest Herb Lover’s Handbook

Summer is a wonderful time to enjoy herbs fresh from your garden. Whether you have pots on the deck or a whole backyard, all you need to produce abundant harvests is a few starter plants or packets of seed plants, some soil, adequate water, and a sunny spot.

Freshly harvested herbs deliver a burst of flavor that turns the simplest dish into something special, and the varieties available provide endless possibilities for creativity. A little know-how will enable you to make the most of your herbal harvest. To get started, see delicious recipes below, all featured in my book, The Northwest Herb Lover’s Handbook.

Harvesting herbs
During the growing season, pinch back or snip off tender leaves and stems as needed to enliven salads, marinades, and entrees. To pinch back, use your thumbnails or hand pruners to remove plant tips. Sever the stems just above a leaf node and take less than a quarter of the plant’s leaves. Doing this regularly will keep your herbs compact and productive.

When buds begin to form on perennial herbs like mint, oregano, and thyme, flavor oils are at their peak. Cut the stems back to the ground and soon another flush of growth will appear. Plants that are not cut back will flower and go to seed; the leaves will toughen and may turn yellow or brown. If this has already happened, August is not too late in the season to cut them back.

To preserve your harvest, fasten bunches of herbs with rubber bands and hang them in a warm place out of direct sunlight, make pesto to freeze or herbal vinegars. When the weather’s gloomy and your garden’s asleep, you’ll be glad you did.

Twelve Culinary Favorites
Basil          
Bay leaf      
Chives          
Dill
Mint
Marjoram
Oregano
Parsley
RosemaryTarragon
Sage
Thyme

Recipes starring easy-to-grow Herbs

Herbal Tea
For each cup of hot tea, use one tablespoon of fresh herbs and one cup of water. For iced tea, double or triple the amount of herbs. Gather, rinse, and crush or chop fresh herbs of your choice. Set fresh water to boil. Warm a teapot with hot water from the stove or tap. Drain teapot, add herbs, then freshly boiling water. Cover with a lid and steep for about five minutes. Strain, sweeten if desired, and serve hot or cold. So easy! Read herbal tea labels for even more ideas.

Flavor ideas:

• Fresh mint, sweetened or not
• Borage leaves with a tad of lemon juice and honey; garnish with borage flowers
• Lemon balm, lemon verbena, lemon thyme
• Thyme with honey and lemon (chases away colds)
• Anise hyssop with a splash of orange juice
• Fortify with black tea for body; add color with dried hibiscus flowers

Calendula Tomato Salad
4 large, juicy-ripe beefsteak tomatoes
Petals from 4 calendula flowers
12 – 20 borage flowers
1 tablespoon chopped basil
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons fruity olive oil

Slice the tomatoes and arrange them on an attractive platter. Sprinkle the calendula petals, borage flowers, basil and chives over them. Drizzle with vinegar and oil and serve. Serves 4.

Tabouli
A Middle Eastern specialty, tabouli refreshes the palate with flavors of mint, parsley, lemon, and tomatoes. It’s an ideal make-ahead dish for summer celebrations, and actually tastes better the second day.

1 cup boiling water
1 cup bulgur
¾ cup chopped parsley
½ cup chopped mint
4 green onions, chopped, including tops
1 cup cooked navy beans
½ cup fresh lemon juice
½ cup fruity olive oil
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 large tomatoes, chopped
Whole mint leaves for garnish

Pour the boiling water over the bulgur and allow to stand for 20 minutes to 1 hour. (You can also use cold water, but let it stand for 2 hours.) Fluff it with a fork, add all ingredients except tomatoes, and stir well to blend. Add tomatoes and stir lightly. Garnish with mint leaves.

Author and NW herb expert, Mary Preus, is a native Washingtonian from a family of avid gardeners. She lived and breathed herbs at Silver Bay Herb Farm in Silverdale for nearly 20 years then moved to Seattle and took a gardening job with the Seattle Parks Department where she’s now a Senior Gardener, responsible for the horticultural aspects of 45 parks in the Rainier Valley. Her book is available for sale at Molbak’s.