Category: dining

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How to Use Finishing Salt

The better question is – What is Finishing Salt?

Most people have heard of kosher, sea salt, and Himalayan salts.  Within those categories are Flaked Sea Salt, and Himalayan Pink and Black. There are also Smoked Salt, Fleur de Sel, and Black Lava.  Fleur de Sel is a premium salt harvested in Brittany on the south coast of France. They harvest the salt crust from the surface of seawater ponds as they evaporate. Black Lava is harvested in Hawaii and combined with activated charcoal from lava. Black Lava is helpful for digestion and provides essential minerals.  If you love the smokey flavour from the BBQ you’ll enjoy B. Kosher is a coarse-grained salt, but to be labeled as Kosher it must be certified by a Jewish Institute.  The harvesting and processing of salts is an ancient one.  Archeologists have found records of production from 8000 years ago.

We get our gourmet flaked sea salt from a Canadian supplier.  They harvest salt water from the pristine coastline of Oyster Bay, on the Canadian Pacific. It is hand-harvested and filtered for impurities. They follow a very hands-on process.

How to Store Salt

Finishing salt keeps well in a sealed jar in a cool dry location, like a pantry. Do not store it near your stove or any place where it is exposed to steam from cooking. It will cause your salt to clump store it and don’t store it in the fridge. It will absorb moisture. Sea salts and Himalayans can last forever if properly stored. Ceramics, glass, or pottery are the best ways to store salt. Do not use cardboard, metal, or plastic due to the corrosive properties of salt.

How to Enjoy Salts

Flaked salt can be sprinkled on everything from your breakfast eggs to a beautiful piece of dark chocolate. Finishing salts are natural, unrefined salts usually served in a pinch bowl at the table.  Finishing salts are sprinkled on to add extra seasoning and crunch. But the best sprinkle has to be reserved for that great bowl of popcorn.  You can add dried herbs to flaked salt. In our case, we have added Rosemary and Sage/Parsley/Rosemary. Both add amazing flavour to meats, fish, vegetables, and even cheddar biscuits. One of my favorite ways to enjoy our herbal flaked salts is over sliced tomato on an open-faced sandwich.

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Gnocchi, Italian Comfort Food

 Gnocchi are light, little pillows of potato dumpling goodness. Like the dumplings of so many international recipes, they are comfort food. Actually comfort is the reason, according to legend, that the dumpling was invented. One story tells of Zhang Zhongjing, a Chinese medical practitioner who wrapped dough around a meat filling, and added it to soup to provide relief from frostbite and illness to his villagers. The Italians track their gnocchi to the 1500’s.  Whether you believe the Italians or the Chinese or for that matter the Romans, dumplings, have been around for a very long time. I was quite surprised to discovered just how many countries have dumplings in their history of recipes.
There is one word that you will find repeated throughout this recipe. That’s ‘gently’. Overworking, just like overcooking will create hard little nuggets. You want the dough to just come together and be slightly sticky. Traditional Gnocchi have ridges, sometimes made over the tines of a fork or rolled over a special wooden mold. I made these simply, as it can be enough of a challenge making a tender Gnocchi. If you want to go for the gusto, there are lots of YouTube videos on how to do it.
When it comes to the potatoes for Gnocchi, Yukon Gold are the best choice, but in a pinch a Russets are the next best. Yukon Golds are a higher starch potato, prized for creamy mashed potatoes. Exactly what you want to create a beautiful Gnocchi.

Ingredients:

Dough:
  • 1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes
  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp salt
Sauce:
  • 3 lg tomatoes
  • 1 egg
  • 1 white onion
  • 1 lg clove garlic
  • 2 tbsp fresh oregano
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • Grated cheese

Method:

Gnocchi:

  1. Cook the Yukon Gold potatoes, skins on, either by steaming or gently in microwave.
  2. Set the potatoes aside to cool, skins on.
  3. Peel and gently crumble the potatoes with a fork. Resist the temptation to get out the masher.
  4. In a separate bowl combine salt and flour.
  5. With fork, beat egg and gently combine with potatoes.
  6. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the potato mixture. You can mound the potato and flour on a working surface and add the egg to that, but I find it easier to mix it in a bowl.
  7. Using your fingers of one hand gently swirl around to combine flour and potato. The mixture will come together to form a light ball. Still with one hand gather all the bits and with a few gentle turns, knead the mixture.
  8. Divide dough into 4 sections. Cover bowl and set aside.
  9. Bring a pot of water to gentle boil.
  10. While you are waiting for the water to boil start the sauce.
  11. Flour a work surface lightly.
  12. Roll each of the sections into a long rope, roughly 3/4″ thick.
  13. Slice rope into pieces 3/4″ long.
  14. Boil all the gnocchi from each rope section separately.
  15. As soon as the gnocchi float they are cooked.
  16. Lift with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Sauce:
  1. Finely dice onion and mince garlic.
  2. Remove the seeds from the tomatoes. I used basic beefsteak tomatoes because that’s what I happened to have. Ideally plum tomatoes, such as Roma, are best for pasta sauces.
  3. Stem and mince fresh oregano.
  4. Pulse the tomatoes in a food processor, adding the oregano leaves i
  5. n the last few seconds. Do not puree.
  6. Heat a saute pan on fairly high heat and add the prepared onion and garlic.
  7. As the onion starts to brown lightly, reduce the heat to medium.
  8. When the onion and garlic are tender add the tomato mixture. Then add the wine, butter, and milk.
  9. Simmer until sauce reduces. Salt and pepper to taste.
  10. Add the gnocchi to the tomato sauce. Toss and serve immediately topped with grated cheese.
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Eggs and Cress

adding cress to scrambled eggs
Eggs and cress, these two just seem to be made for each other. Certainly the British feel so with their love of watercress on egg salad sandwiches for tea time. These curly cress are different that watercress. Watercress have a wide round leave and a more woody stem so what you find these days are baby watercress. Curly cress have a slender pointed leaf. They are a very pretty microgreen, whether served in food or sprinkled on top.
I think you can start the day beautifully  with lovely, soft eggs, scrambled and lightly tossed with beautiful, peppery curly cress microgreens. Who needs something with hollandaise sauce just to make a fancy breakfast dish? Of course a great bread, with or without gluten. For this breakfast I used a delicate kolach bread, but any bread with a slightly sweet, soft texture will make a tender toast. I buy our kolach from Robert and our eggs from Brenda. Both at thecurly cress microgreens Deville Market at North Cooking Lake.
I love La Vache qui Rit from Fromageries Bel.  It’s just about my favorite cream cheese. I’m also passionate about the combination of generous folds of delicate cold smoked salmon with scrambled eggs. My favorite is J. Willy Krauch & Sons smokehouse salmon, if you can find them. It’s a treat I enjoy any time I am down east. Going to the smokehouse is a guilty pleasure and well worth the drive, if you are taking a Maritime holiday. But I digress. If you aren’t a fish fan, a soft and mild prosciutto is also equal to the task.
Farm fresh country eggs are just about essential for a good scramble, as far as I’m concerned. Fresh eggs from a local coop almost always means the chickens were fed a better diet, frequently allowed to scratch for a living and are a happier chicken. All to give us eggs with a beautiful, upright yolk, a firm shell and just an all round better tasting, never mind more nutritious breakfast.
Of course we respect those eggs by cooking them over gentle heat, in butter, not oil, after having whipped them to fluffy perfection. Adding water to the eggs, not milk when whipping makes for a fluffy scrambled egg. The water will steam during the cooking process. The perfect scramble is pushed around the pan while cooking to keep it tender and soft, and still a bit runny. It shouldn’t take more than 2 minutes, making this a breakfast that doesn’t have to wait for the weekend. Note the addition of a tsp of water to the eggs. A lot of people add milk to scrambled eggs, but milk makes a tougher egg.
Ingredients per person:
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp of water
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 2 slices smoked salmon
  • 2 pinches of Curly Cress
  • 1 triangle of La Vache qui Rit
  • 1 slice kolach bread
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

  1. Whisk together eggs with the bit of water until light and fluffy.
  2. Heat a saute or fry pan over barely medium heat. Melt the butter in the pan.
  3. Make your toast, spreading with the cream cheese. Fold your salmon and place on the toast so you can see the edges of salmon draping over the toast. Eating is all about appearance, so it’s worth the extra couple seconds to make the first meal of your day pretty.
  4. Pour the eggs into the heated pan. Immediately and gently push around in the pan with a firm silicone spatula, don’t stir. The idea is to have nice, full, fluffy eggs. That requires a gentle touch. As soon as the eggs are showing signs of starting to set, sprinkle with the cress.
  5. Eggs should be just done, still having a slight creaminess to them. That will take barely 2 minutes.
  6. Mound the eggs onto the prepped toast and sprinkle with salt and pepper, as desired.
  7. Mmm, now that’s breakfast.
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Making Earl Grey Jelly

Who’d have thought to make tea from jelly? Our daughter is a fan of all things tea, so it wasn’t surprising that she wondered if I could make jelly from tea. Making jelly is as much science as it is art. When you have the right balance of sugar, acid, pectin, time, temperature, etc you have jelly or jam. That’s pretty simplified, which is why it is usually recommended that you follow the recipes inside the Bernardin or Certo box until you get the hang of jam making and can branch out.

The tea jelly was quite an experiment. The Strawberry Jammin’ was bit of an easier one. Perhaps because the tea has bits of fruit in it.  Earl Grey a little less forgiving. I had to increase the lemon juice and the pectin to get it to set. Amazingly, the Lemoncello tea was the hardest recipe to make set.

In your leisure you can Google all about the science of jam making. Not that it is boring, but it is quite a dry read , especially when all you want to do is fire up the jam pot. It’s all about collagen, a history of jam making, sugars, etc. So let’s get steeping shall we?

In the recipe I have laid out the process for preparing to make jelly. This is as important part of the procedure. You want to have everything in place so you aren’t rushing to measure sugar or wash jars, during the one minute your jelly is boiling.

Ingredients:

  • 5 cups boiling water
  • 5 tbsp Earl Grey de la Creme tea leaves.
  • 2 tbsp Lemon juice. You can squeeze a lemon or use a bottle of lemon juice like RealLemon
  • 1 pkg Pectin. This method uses Bernardin.
  • 5 cups or 1000 g of white sugar
  • A flat of 125 ml Mason Jars

Method:

  1. I used Earl Grey de la Creme from Sipology. It’s a lovely Earl Grey and a good quality tea. Measure 5 tbsp of tea leaves in 2 steeping sacks and seal.
  2. Boil 5 cups of water, reduce to a simmer and add the steeping sacks. Brew for 15 minutes.
  3. Wash mason jars, disks and rings in hot soapy water, then fill with boiling hot water and set aside.
  4. Measure out the sugar and set aside.
  5. Prepare a surface for filling your jars. I use a large cookie sheet and a cooling rack.
  6. On a plate lay out a ladle, rubber scraper, and a slotted plastic spatula or a slotted spoon for skimming foam. In jam and jelly making it is important to keep everything involved in the process as clean as possible to minimize risk of contamination.
  7. Filling your canning pot half full of water and set to boil.
  8. Place a small plate in the freezer. This is for testing the set of your jelly.
  9. Remove and discard the steeping sacks. Measure the liquid tea to ensure you have 3 1/2 cups.
  10. Return the steep tea to the cooking pot and add the lemon juice.
  11. Whisk in the pectin and return to the heat, bringing to a boil quickly.
  12. As soon as the pectin mixture boils slide the pot off the heat and add sugar stirring thoroughly to dissolve the sugar. Scrape down the sides and return the pot to the heat.
  13. Bring jelly mixture to a fast boil. Over boiling will give you a very tough jelly, so don’t walk away from the stove. As soon as the mixture boils, set the timer to one minute.
  14. Remove the jelly pot from the heat and place on your prepped surface.
  15. Take the plate from the freezer and spoon out enough to make a small circle. Two inches across is plenty. Return plate to the freezer.
  16. Carefully skim any foam from the surface of the jelly. I use a slotted plastic spatula. You will notice over a couple of minutes that it becomes easier to skim. Don’t stir.
  17. Check the plate in the freezer. Drawing your figure through the mixture should give you a jelly texture. If it is very soft you can decide whether or not to increase the lemon juice by one tablespoon and the sugar by 1/4 cup and repeat the boil.
  18. Drain the jars of the hot water and turn upside down on the cooling rack.
  19. With a ladle, quickly fill the hot jars to within 1/4″ of the top edge. That’s about half way up the threaded part of the jar.
  20. Anything you can’t ladle, or pour out stays in the pot. Everything left in the pot can go on your sampling toast, but you don’t want it in your pretty, clear jars of jelly.
  21. With a hot, damp paper towel, wipe off the rim and the outer threaded part of the jar. I say paper towel as you want a single use, not a damp tea towel. Run your fingertip around the rim of the jar to make sure there aren’t any sticky spots that will prevent a good seal.
  22. Place the hot discs and rings on the jars and finger tighten. Too tight will prevent sealing.
  23. Place the filled jars in holder of your canning pot and lower into the boiling water. Make sure there is at least 1 inch of water covering the jars.
  24. Cover and set your timer to 10 minutes.
  25. When boiling has completed remove the jars from the canner and set on a rack to cool.
  26. As the jars cool you will hear distinctive pops ensuring that you have an airtight seal on each jar.
  27. Try not to move until the jars have completely cooled. That means you don’t rock the jars to see if the jelly has set. That will break the surface of the jelly most certainly cause a jelling failure.
  28. Check to see that “button” in the center of the lid has drawn down, ensuring a seal. If you push on it and it goes down and stays that way, it is fine. Any jars that don’t seal will have to be refrigerated.

And there, you have a tea jelly to enjoy and share.

 

 

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Ahi Tuna with Sunflower Shoot Risotto

I’m on a bit of a mission. The question is constant, customers would like to know, besides the obvious, salads and sandwiches, how they can add more greens to their kitchen.  So my task, in this case, is how I can incorporate sunflower shoots into dinner because, well cress, dill, etc, those are pretty easy. But sunflower, that’s a little less obvious.  As a customer commented this weekend, she added bok choy greens to a recipe and it wasn’t the best flavour. I wanted to take advantage of the eye candy appeal of those round, crisp leaves. Sunflower shoots have the same delicious, nutty flavour as the seeds. It’s a taste millions have come to love.
Now combine this thought process with the inspiration from a recent conversation with Chef Sonny Sung, Bistecca, about pan toasting rice before making risotto. It’s the secret to taking rice from those bland white kernels, a supporting cast we bury in sauces, to a flavour infused part of our meal. I have to say, this was probably the best risotto I’ve ever made and really, and it didn’t change the length of time or effort to make.
Okay, we have crisp/tender, toasty flavoured arborio rice; crisp, nutty sunflower shoots; that just called for the ahi tuna steaks I had in the freezer, and….. garlic. I roasted the garlic to bring out its nuttiness, then combined with a good olive oil. If you have never had roasted garlic, it’s pretty easy to accomplish. Drizzle a bulb with a bit of oil, wrap in foil and toss in a 450 degree oven for about 30 min. As soon as you can smell it, it’s done. Use some of that, olive oil and a bit of butter to toast the rice. Brush the steaks lightly with the garlic oil and pan sear. Toss sunflower shoots into the riscotto just before plating. Sounds really good and I haven’t hit the stove yet.
Rice serves 4. One tuna steak, or a protein of choice per person.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup white wine
3 tbsp lemon juice
3 to 4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 cup arborio rice
3/4 cup sunflower shoots (about 1/2  a 5×5 square)
1 tuna steak per person
Salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. To roast garlic, cut the top off a bulb, exposing the cloves. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil, or another oil if you prefer. Wrap in foil and place in oven. Turn off the oven. It will stay hot long enough to gently roast the garlic, without the risk of overcooking. Take the garlic out when you can smell it. Usually that is roughly 30 minutes.  To remove the cooked garlic easily, turn the bulb over  a plate and squeeze from the bottom.
  2. Blend garlic and olive oil. Set a bit aside to garnish the plate, about a tsp for each plate.
  3. Brush garlic oil on both sides of each tuna steak and set aside to marinate. I marinated them for about an hour.
  4. Combine chicken stock, lemon juice, and white wine.
  5. Harvest the sunflower shoots and rinse. Set aside. Remember before combining with the rice to keep a few to garnish the plates.
  6. In saute pan over medium heat add a couple tbsp of the garlic oil and the tsp of butter.

    cooking with microgreens
    Toasted rice for risotto.
  7. When the butter is melted add the rice. Push around in the pan until the tips of the rice are toasted.
  8. Set the timer for 20 minutes. Add about half of the stock to the toasted rice and simmer and stir until the stock is almost taken up by the rice. It is a good a idea to give the pan a shake occasionally. At this point you will be slowly adding the remaining stock and stirring. Rice is cooked when it still has just a bit of bite to it.
  9. During the last few minutes of the rice cooking, heat another saute pan for the tuna steaks. It’s ready when a drop of water bounces around the pan from the heat.
  10. You have 3 minutes from the time the steaks go on, until they are seared. Tuna steaks are served rare, overcook and you will basically have canned tuna taste. Place the steaks straight down in the pan and set the time for 1.5 minutes. Don’t move until the timer goes off. Turn the steaks and set the timer for another 1.5 minutes.  Add the sunflower shoots to the rice. Toss lightly to combine and spoon onto the plates.
  11. Remove the steaks from the heat and plate. Garnish with the remaining sunflower shoots. Add a swoosh of the garlic oil to decorate the plate.
  12. Serve and prepare for the oohs and aaahs.
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Scrambled Eggs with Everything

It’s minus brutal outside, but we have a fridge full of breakfast makings.  Most of the time breakfast usually depends on what’s in the fridge, but today I was a bit more prepared. I was thinking western omelet or frittata, something interesting, but I decided I want to see all the ingredients. So I created a plate that was separate layers. That is especially nice when you have ingredients like Blue Oyster mushrooms from Gruger Family Fungi. Making this is a little more effort, because you have to prep and cook each of ingredients separately, before cooking the eggs. If this is more than you want to do first thing in the morning, do what I did and make it more of a brunch dish. This would also make a great lunch plate or breakfast for supper, as we’ve been known to do.

The ingredients are a quantity for breakfast for two, but I’m sure you can do the math to increase it. The joy with cooking like this is that if you don’t have all the ingredients, or you have preferences it’s easy to change it up. The one thing I always use my freshly dried basil leaves. Crumbled basil leaves have far more flavour, especially when you rub the leaf bits in your fingers, just before adding to the eggs. I can never get enough of that aroma.

Dice or slice each of the ingredients, as noted, so your presentation is uniform. If you are going to the effort to make a dish with multiple layers like this, presentation is everything. We eat with our eyes first, so why not make your meals feel like you are dining out and take a couple extra minutes to plate everything.

Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs per person
  • 6-8 oyster mushrooms
  • 2 pinches dried basil
  • 1/3 cup each, red, orange and yellow pepper
  • 4 slices lean bacon
  • 1/4 cup water
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup finely grated cheese

Method:

  1. Chop the peppers into 1/4″ squares.
  2. Slice the oyster mushrooms into 1/2″ wide, long strips.
  3. Slice the bacon into 1/4″ strips.
  4. Saute the bacon until almost crisp. Drain on paper towel and set aside to keep warm. Leave the fat in the pan.
  5. Saute the pepper mixture until tender and set aside to keep warm.
  6. Saute the mushrooms in the bacon fat, adding the 1/4 cup of water to keep the mushrooms tender. Set aside to keep warm.
  7. Rub the basil leaf to refresh the aroma. Combine with the eggs, and a bit of water and beat.
  8. Reduce the heat and cook the eggs until just done.
  9. Plate the eggs, then sprinkle on the bacon. Spoon the pepper mixture around and on the eggs.
  10. Top with grated cheese, and if desired a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
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Tuna Melt with Brie and Onion Jam

Tuna sandwich…blah…blah…blah. Another boring lunch, when you open the pantry trying to decide on something to eat.  But what if a couple of more ingredients could turn blah into yummm? I found myself in the same predicament, staring into the void of the pantry looking for something quick, easy, but good for lunch. That’s when I spotted the tuna I remember a conversation about a dip.
From across the market table we are constantly discussing recipes created using our savory jams. This one was inspired by a customer who makes a seafood dip with mayo and our onion jam.  A quick survey of the fridge found a bit of leftover brie and the jam. Yes, Tuna Melt, now all that’s needed is to combine everything and fire up the panini press.

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1/2 tbsp onion jam
  • 1 can light tuna
  • 4 slices rye bread
  • Butter
  • Brie

Method:

  1. Combine mayonnaise and onion jam. For a variation you could also add a little chopped onion and celery.
  2. Drain and add tuna. Mix well.
  3. Butter the bread and pile on filling.
  4. Slice the brie slices about 1/4″ thick.
  5. Butter the outside of the sandwich or for a even better sandwich, spread lightly with more of the mayonnaise.
  6. Grill on panini press or in the frypan until cheese melts.
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Appetizer Meatballs with Raspberry Heat

Everyone has their go-to meatball recipe, especially for the holiday entertaining/potluck season. This one is mine. With the combination of beef and pork, these are a nice, tender bite. The Raspberry Heat jam is a zesty compliment to the meatballs. As for the meat, if you can’t have either meat, it works equally well with ground chicken or turkey. I’d change it up to use Fortified Cherry jam, just because the cherry pairs well with poultry.

I saute the garlic and onion as these meatballs are small, and the onions don’t have time to cook sufficiently in the oven.

As for the binding, while the recipe calls for rolled oats or breadcrumbs I find that the breadcrumbs hold together better than the rolled oats.

  • 1 lb lean ground beef
  • 1 lb lean ground pork
  • 1 finely chopped onion
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce.
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • Flour to coat
  • ¾ cup quick cooking oats or breadcrumbs
  • 1 jar Raspberry Heat
  1. Saute the minced garlic and onions until tender.
  2. Combine ground beef, quick oats, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Then add the cooked garlic and onions and any cooking liquid from the saute pan.
  3. Once the coarse ingredients are combined add the paprika, Worcestershire Sauce.
  4. Refrigerate, covered, for several hours to allow the flavours to meld and the mixture to bind.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  6. With a teaspoon scoop out meat mixture.
  7. Dip into flour and roll between palms.
  8. Place in rows several inches apart on edged baking sheets.
  9. Bake for 20 minutes until cooked through
  10. Recipe makes approximately 68 – 1” meatballs.
  11. Warm 1 bottle of Raspberry Heat until soft.
  12. Spoon jam over meatballs and serve.

 

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Rosemary Potatoes with Smoked Pork Chops

I’ve heard lots of great things about A & A Meats so I was delighted to find him as a fellow vendor at the Westview Village Night Market. Besides sausage and pepperoni, I brought home these delightful smoked pork chops. What better pairing for the chops than rosemary glazed baby potatoes? By rosemary glazed, I mean our rosemary jelly. The sweet rosemary wine jelly is a beautiful combination with the smokey, salty flavour of the smoked chop. Even better, it’s all cooked stovetop, in one pan. Well, two for me, since a served it with baby peas.

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups baby potatoes
  • 2 small onions
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 2 tbsp rosemary jelly
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 – 4 smoked pork chops
  • Rinse baby potatoes.

Method:

  1. Slice 2 small onions.
  2. Crush garlic.
  3. Add canola oil to covered saute pan and heat.
  4. Toss potatoes, sliced potatoes and garlic in the pan.
  5. Season with salt and pepper.
  6. Soften 2 tbsp rosemary jelly in 1/4 cup water and add to the pan.
  7. Reduce heat. Cover and cook for 10 min, until potatoes are tender.
  8. Move cooked potatoes aside and add smoked chops.
  9. Cover and cook until chops are heated through.
  10. Cook peas or veggies of choice.
  11. Plate using pan juices as a glaze.

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How to Cook with Fresh Herbs

Yes, even in an Alberta winter you can cook with fresh herbs. In fact it’s probably the best time, as far as enjoyment goes. Just the aroma of the fresh herbs takes you back to summer dining. Bruise a fresh leaf and inhale. You won’t be able to help yourself. You have to smile and savor that aroma.

As for what herbs are best fresh? Just about everything, but herbs with woody stocks like rosemary and thyme hold their flavour well when dried. The tender stocks, like the basils, cilantro and chives are far better fresh.

Where to Find Fresh Herbs?

Well, there is the fresh produce department in your grocery store. But those poor bruised cuttings can be pricey and if they are discounted as a store loss leader, you know the quality probably isn’t great. Sometimes the groceries have live plants, but you need to get them while they are still fresh as they don’t get much care and attention, ie. watering once they are put on the display.

Variety on the grocery shelf is limited and frequently you will find an empty peg where the dill should be. Thai Basil, Lemon Grass or Kafir Lime are almost non-existent, except in the Asian markets. Herbs like Marjoram or Savory are pretty much only available dried in a bottle, unless you know a local grower.

There is your own windowsill, if you brought in your plants before the temperatures dropped. There are lots of ways to grow fresh in your home, depending on your space and lighting restrictions. Ideally start with something small and easily cared for, while you are experimenting with how what to grow. The photo is of a tiny countertop hydro system we which we experimented. We grew a number of different herbs very successfully.

Farmers’ and Community Markets are a great source of fresh herbs and you may still be able to get herbs from local growers. (Shameless plug, we grow a variety of fresh herbs all year round.)

Why is Fresh Better?

Tune into any cooking show and watch the chef. They are always chopping fresh herbs to add to their recipes. A big reason for this is the flavour. Yes, if you look up the conversion you will see that you need more fresh vs dried herbs, but the aroma of the fresh herbs is so much better. Like anything else, freshly picked provides way more nutrients and antioxidants. Plus a sprig or two of the herb makes a beautiful garnish on your dish, and presentation is important, including at the family dinner table.

One note to make on using fresh herbs is the length of cooking time. Some cooks say why bother with fresh if you are simmer for an hour or more, but European chefs are famous for their use of bouquet garni.  Bouquet garni is a bundle of fresh herbs, tied together with a string. That makes it easier for you to pull it out of the pot prior to serving. Rosemary, bay leaf, thyme, tarragon and parsley are the most common herbs that you would remove prior to serving. If you are using a bouquet garni bag you can also add peppercorns and other spices to the bag. Bouquet garni bags are fine cotton or muslin, but you could use tea egg in a pinch.

To Chop or not to Chop

Not a question really, more like a kitchen myth, says Peter Aitken. But it is a point of some debate. I go with ‘chop’ in a cooked dish, ‘tear’ if it’s a salad. It would be my opinion and yes, it is with some bias, that I say it is more important the quality of the ingredient and less how you get it into the pot.

Have a great day and may your cooking always be successful!

Laura