Subject: Culinary herb FAQ (v.1.01) Part 3/3

From: [email-masked] (Henriette Kress)
Date: 29 Aug 1995 11:44:49 GMT

A culinary herb FAQ / Resource list for the rec.gardens newsgroup. 
Available by www: http://sunsite.unc.edu/culiherb.thml
and ftp: ftp sunsite.unc.edu /pub/academic/medicine/alternative-
    healthcare/herbal-medicine/faqs/culiherb.txt

==========
4.2  Herb oil
-----
From: [email-masked] (Edgar Wickberg)
All homemade herb or vegetable flavoured oils have doubtful safety if 
  they are not refrigerated immediately and kept in the refrigerator.  
  The reason for concern is botulism.  Clostridium botulinum, the 
  organism that makes the deadly poison that results in botulism, grows 
  in airfree environments.  It is only when it grows that it produces 
  the toxin.  Putting anything up in oil produces a really great 
  airfree ( oxygen free) environment and therfore the risk of toxin 
  production.  Clostridium botulinum is a very common organism in all 
  of our environments, but the orgamism itself isn't dangerous to us.  
  It requires, besides the airfree environment, a low acid one and 
  temperatures above fridge temps.  This is probably more than you ever 
  wanted to hear about why not to make garlic flavoured oil.  Why not 
  dry most of your garlic so it will last and make just a little oil 
  and keep it in the fridge.  To make the kind that you store in the 
  fridge, just heat a small quanitity of oil ( of your choice), put a 
  few peeled cloves of garlic in a small bottle, pour the hot oil over, 
  cool for half an hour, cover and refrigerate.

-----
From: [email-masked] (gwen baker)
Take the cleaned herbs and place into a jar (a mason jar will do).  
  Heat the oil to just warm (too hot and you will cook the herbs 
  instead of extracting the taste), pour the warm oil over the herbs 
  and let set.  Check every 3 days to once a week, straining and 
  adding additional herbs until the desired flavor is reached.

HeK comment to above: keep in refrigerator until desired flavor is 
  reached and thereafter.

==========
4.3  Drying your herbs
-----
From: [email-masked] (Amy Smith):
You don't need anything terribly high tech to dry herbs... 
For leaves you can use old window screens in a DRY DARK place (like the 
  attic). If you are growing seedlings, place the screens on the top of 
  the fluorescent lights. 
For roots you might want to use the oven on low. Chopping the roots 
  first helps. Food hydrators are better for roots.
Flowers are like leaves but you MUST be careful about keeping it dark. 
  (the sun leeches the nutrients out of herbs and they disintegrate 
  too.)
You can also hang bunches of leaves on string in a dark place outside 
  (if you are in a fairly low humid climate) Or put flowers or leaves 
  in paper sacks and hang them to dry (shake them or stir them 
  periodically so they don't stick together inside the sack.)

From: ?:
Never store herbs in completely airtight containers unless you have 
  access to a dessicant (like you get in pill bottles) to store with 
  them since you will never perfectly dry them and therefore they need 
  to breath.

From: [email-masked] (Judith Rogow), in response to above:
An old remedy - tie a few grains of rice in a bit of cheese cloth and 
  add it to the bottle if you must keep it tightly closed.

>From  HeK:
Never use a microwave to dry herbs.  First, timing and stuff is 
  different for different microwave ovens, second, the taste isn't that 
  good, and third, you can end up with a fire in your kitchen.
If you use a dehydrator never go above 40 deg. Celcius. Most herbs are 
  tasty because of volatile oils and in high temperatures these 
  volatile oils get volatile and your herbs get tasteless.
And, if you use the bunched-herbs -method outlined above, strip the 
  leaves off the stalks after your herbs are dry. Stalks aren't that 
  tasty in soups, and can be tossed on barbecue coals to give some 
  taste there.

==========
4.4  Freezing your herbs
-----
From: [email-masked] (Michael Rooney)
The best way to do it is to cut the leaves off and then put them into a 
  tight container and freeze them.  If you are in a hurry you can put 
  in the stems too and cut the leaves off later.

>From  HeK:
  I've found the best way to freeze parsley is to cut it fine before 
  freezing. Then you can scrap some directly from the jar into your 
  soup/sauce/whatever without having to cut it while it's frozen / 
  going mushy on you. I've done this for the others I've frozen as well 
  - dill at least is way too stringy to be easily cut when frozen.

From: [email-masked] (gwen baker)
Chop the herbs into the desired size and place into a ice cube tray.
  You can fit a premeasured amount in so you know how much in each 
  segment (I use a tblsp).  Then add just enough water to cover the 
  chopped leaf and freeze.  You can pop out the cubes and store in bags 
  and have the flavor of fresh herbs year round.

-----
From: [email-masked] (Michael Rooney)
Another great way is to make them into pesto.  Try different herbs with 
  pignoli nuts, pecans (dill and pecan is one of my favorites), 
  walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, etc. until you find the combinations you 
  like.  We freeze the pestos by putting saran wrap over a pint ice 
  cream top (yes, the plastic one from a Dutch sounding one made really 
  in NJ :-)), forcing in as much pesto as we can, and putting the saran 
  wrap over the top.  Then we wrap it in aluminium foil and label it 
  and put it in the freezer.  The best part is we have it all winter 
  long and it tastes great on many things, especially pasta, chicken, 
  pork, shrimp, fish, etc.

(also see Pesto, 4.9.2 below).

==========
4.6  Jelly, syrup and other sweet stuff
-----
also see 2.17.3 for garlic jelly and 2.20.3 for horseradish jelly.

=====
4.6.1  Flower / herb jelly
----- 
Basic flower jelly recipe - can also be used for herbs
From: [email-masked] (Bess Haile):
    2 cups flower infusion: 
        steep 2+ cups moderately packed flowers in 2 cups boiling water 
        at least 30 minutes
  1/4 cup lemon juice (E. Toley says not to use bottled, but I do)
    4 cups sugar
    3 oz of liquid pectin (this will be 1/2 box of liquid Certo)
Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil you can't stir down.  Add pectin 
  and boil 2 minutes.  Ladle into hot sterile jars. Seal in preferred 
  manner.
Note (Bess Haile): I prefer the liquid certo to the powdered.  It seems 
  to jell better with flowers.  Also, I find the extra minute of 
  boiling helps to create a stiffer jelly, though 1 minute will create 
  a clear jam-like texture.  I always use the 4 oz canning jars because 
  I can give away some of the jellies without running out of all my 
  stock.  Not everyone likes jelly from flowers.  My own family HATES 
  rose jelly which is one of my favorites.  Also, note, rose petals 
  have a bitter white bit where the petals join the flower.  Cut these 
  off.  I do this by holding the flower, step up, and cutting around 
  the flower, leaving all the bitter bits on the flower.  I've used 
  Rose, Honeysuckle, Lavender, and many herbs too.  Rosemary makes a 
  good jelly for a glaze on roast pork (and probably lamb). Lemon 
  verbena and spearmint are great too! 

Rose petal jelly
From: [email-masked] (Gwen Baker)
  1 1/2 c rose petals
  1 1/2 c white grape juice
    1/2   water
  3 1/2 c sugar
  1     pkg liquid fruit pectin
Trim away white part of rose petals, wash petals thoroughly, and drain. 
  Combine rose petals and grape juice in a sauce pan.  Bring to a 
  rolling boil, stirring constantly; cook 1 min, stirring frequently. 
  Add fruit pectin; cook stirring constantly, until mixture returns to 
  a rolling boil. Continue boiling 1 min, stirring frequently.  Remove 
  from heat, and skim off foam with a metal spoon.  Quickly pour jelly 
  into hot sterilized jar leaving 1/4 in headspace; cover with metal 
  lids and screw tight.  Process in boiling water bath for 5 min.  
  Makes 3 pints.
For fun leave the rose petals in and you can tell folks you are eating 
  roses - they end up with the funniest looks on their faces.

Rose petal jelly II
From: [email-masked] (Gwen Baker)
  2 quarts fresh rose petals, loosely packed (about 3 dozen roses)
  1 quart boiling water
  4 cups sugar
  3 tablespoons lemon juice
Place petals in a large bowl. Add boiling water. Cover and steep for 20 
  minutes, or until all color is out of the petals. Strain liquid into 
  a shallow pan. Add sugar and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, 
  stirring constantly until sugar has dissolved, and mixture comes to a 
  rolling boil. Maintain boil until mixture gives a jelly test (2 drops 
  form on side of spoon, then flow together). Skim.  Pour into hot 
  sterile jars. Cover with melted parafin (or use your prefered sealing 
  method). Makes 8 x 6-ounce jars.
Note (Gwen Baker):  The rose petal jelly I have had used added pectin. 
  This recipe thinks rose petals have enough of their own.

Violet flower jelly
From: [email-masked] (Gwen Baker)
Violet infusion:
  2 cups violet blossoms (don't have to pack tightly, just nicely 
    full cups will do)
  2 cups boiling water
Pour boiling water on blossoms and cover 12-24 hours (If you can't get 
  to the cooking within 24 hours, store in the refrigerator).
Jelly recipe:
  2   cups infusion
  1/4 cup  lemon juice
  1   pkg. powdered pectin
  4   cups sugar
Bring first 3 ingredients to a rolling boil (one you can't stir down).  
  Add sugar all at once and bring back to rolling boil. Boil for 1 
  minute. Remove from heat and let boiling die down.  Skim off foam 
  with large spoon.  Pour immediately into hot sterilized jars and 
  seal. Makes 4-5 cups of jelly. I use the half cup jars so I can give 
  away samples without giving away everything. 
Note (Gwen Baker): I've made two batches of this jelly and it is 
  delicious!  The lemon juice turns the blue infusion the most glorious 
  amethyst color.  No fruit jelly I've ever made has this color. It is 
  tart and lemony, but does not taste exactly like lemon.  My violets 
  are not parma violets, just plain old Virginia weeds.

=====
4.6.2  Flower / herb syrup
-----

From: [email-masked] (Gwen Baker):
Rose petal syrup
  1     c rose petals
  1     c water
  1 1/2 c sugar
  3     whole cloves
Trim away white part of rose petals was and drain thoroughly.  Combine 
  rose petals and water in a sauce pan bring to boil.  Then simmer for 
  5 min. Add sugar and cloves.  Simmer until sugar dissolved(do not 
  reboil) strain petals refrigerate. Makes 1 2/3 cup.

Use this for 
Rose cooler:
  1/2 c rose syrup
    2 c club soda
        fresh rose petals.
Combine soda and syrup garnish with rose petals. Makes 2 1/2 cups.

From: [email-masked]
Violet Syrup
You need to collect as many violet flowers as you can find.  This is the
  hardest part--I can almost never find enough. (recipe based on a quart
  of violets, increase or decrease according to what you could find. You 
  could increase the proportion of violets to syrup, making a stronger 
  syrup, but I wouldn't recommend making it much weaker than this)  You
  may wish to wash the flowers, depending on where you found them.
The only important piece of information: go through and remove all the 
  green parts from each flower.  Cooked, the green parts taste strong 
  and spinachy. Just a little green stuff can ruin your whole batch.  
  We learned this the hard way...
In a double boiler dissolve and heat 2 cups sugar and 3 cups water.  If
  you like thick syrup, add more sugar, or less if you like thin.  Make
  sure it's all the way dissolved and very hot.  Fold in the flowers.  
  Put on the lid. Turn down heat so that bottom pan is just boiling - 
  you don't want any steam to escape from the top pan at this point (if 
  you can help it).  Let it cook for another ten minutes.  Take off heat.
  Let cool.  Put it in a jar.
Ta-dah.  You're done.  You could strain out the flowers if you wanted.  I
  recommend keeping the syrup in the fridge.  I bet you could use any 
  edible flower instead of/in addition to violets, but I haven't tried it.

From: [email-masked] (-K.RAGHUNANDAN)
Gulkhan - rose petal syrup
A delicious, medicinally effective recipe using rose petals, is simple 
  to prepare. Called "Gulkhan" in India, this is used as a flavoring in 
  sweet dishes and is also eaten as such or with butter. Among its 
  virtues are a nice flavor, mild sweet taste, good for reducing boils, 
  keep skin and blood circulation clean.
Procedure: Peel fresh petals of 1 Rose flower, spread them in a 
  container. Sprinkle a spoon of sugar. Repeat this process each day 
  until, the quantity is about 250 grams (or to fill a 10 oz jar). 
  Choose only pink/red variety of rose which has a fine flavor. Over a 
  period of 10-20 days the petals dry out and the sugar layer melts to 
  form a syrup. At this stage, take out the entire contents and make a 
  paste (use mortar pestle). Put this mixture in a jar with a lid. The 
  GULKHAN is now ready to use.

=====
4.6.3  Miscellanious sweet stuff
-----

[email-masked] (Waldek Trafidlo)
When I was a kid in Poland years ago my neighbour would prepare a rose 
  petal spread by simply grinding rose petals with sugar, adjusting the 
  proportions to taste as she went. I believe it required some days for 
  the taste to settle but even during preparation it had a wonderful, 
  "elegant" taste. She would often use in baking, also to sweeten and 
  flavour tea. 

==========
4.7  Potpourris and other uses for dried herbs / flowers
-----
Meaning non-culinary uses, in this culinary herbfaq.   ;)

From: [email-masked] (gwen baker) 
Dried herbs can also go into herb pillows and sleep pillows.

=====
4.7.1  Stovetop potpourri
-----  on rec.gardens June 1995:

From: [email-masked] (Jeffrey Clayton): 
  My favorite potpourri recipe is:
  dried orange peel, dried pine needles, dried mint, cinnamon sticks 
  (broken into pieces), cloves
  This is a stove top potpourri -- the kind you put in water and simmer.  
  Aromatherapy says this combination of scents is supposed to keep 
  colds away.

=====
4.7.2  Dry potpourri
-----  on rec.gardens June 1995:
From: [email-masked] (Mandy Haggith): 
  I've been making pot-pourri since I was about 7 and still use the same 
  method I used then - shoe boxes under the bed. I find that the number 
  one ingredient is rose petals, best of all from wild dog roses, but 
  any smelly rose will do. You'll need MASSES of rose petals. Lavender 
  is also wonderful. Pick the flowers (and herb leaves) when they're 
  warm and dry and smelly, stick them loosely in the shoe boxes (either 
  mixed up or not, depending on what you want to do with them) and stir 
  them with a warm dry hand a couple of times a day (or more). The 
  petals will gradually dry out and you can use them in pot-pourri 
  recipes after a few weeks. Under the bed is a good place because it 
  is usually pretty dry, it's dark (so the petals keep some of their 
  colour) and the smell of the drying petals gives you sweet dreams! I 
  find the airing cupboard is too hot and dries the leaves out too fast 
  leaving them shrivelled and not so sweet smelling.

=====
4.7.3  Drying flowers whole for potpourri
-----
From: [email-masked] (Diana Politika): 
  If you want to dry the peony intact, either bury it in silica gel or 
  use a 50/50 mixture of borax and cornmeal.  Leave it buried for about 
  2 weeks and then tilt the container to get the mix to shift off the 
  flower.  Silica works best, but the other is alot cheaper.  If using 
  the borax mix, use a small soft paintbrush to get all the dust off.  
  I've used many of these in arrangments and everyone goes nuts over 
  them. 

From: [email-masked] (gwen baker) 
  When drying flowers using silica be careful.  It can speed the drying 
  process, but it can also cause discoloration and leave a residue 
  behind.  In about the same amount of time the flowers can be dried 
  naturally.  Silica does allow you to keep a flower whole or to 
  preserve a shape.  There is also a liquid ( I think it is a 
  glycerine) that will preserve greenery and keep it soft and flexible.

==========
4.8  Alcoholic beverages
=====
4.8.1  Wine
-----
From: [email-masked] (Gwen Baker)
Rose petal wine
  (who got it from Terry Pelley on rec.winemaking)
  One day before you prepare the must you should make a yeast starter: 
  For one gallon of wine:
    4 oz. Water
    1 tsp sugar
  1/4 tsp nutrient
      Pinch of citric acid
  1/4 tsp yeast
For five gallons of wine:
    2 cups water
    2 tbs sugar
  1/2 tsp nutrient
  1/4 tsp citric acid
    1 package of yeast
Mix all the ingredients in an appropriate size bottle and shake to 
  combine.  Loosely cover the bottle, do not seal it tight; a cloth 
  held in place with a rubber band will work fine.  After sitting for a 
  day this mixture should be fermenting and can be added to the must.
The must:
    6 cups rose petals (fresh) whites removed
  1/4 lb chopped white raisins
5 3/4 cups sugar
    2 tsp yeast nutrient
    2 tsp acid blend
    1 Campden Tablet (crushed)
      Yeast - All purpose or Rhinewine
Boil one gallon of water and combine with rose petals, raisings, and 
  sugar in your primary fermenter.  Allow the mixture to cool to around 
  75 degrees and add yeast nutrient, acid blend and campden tablet.

=====
4.8.2  Ginger ale / ginger beer
-----

From: Jeff Benjamin <[email-masked]>
I normally post this to homebrewing newgroups or mailing lists, so for 
  those who are fermentationally challenged, here are a few notes on 
  the recipe below:
"Sanitized fermentation vessel" simply means a glass container, like a 
  gallon juice jug, that has been sanitized with a dilute bleach 
  solution. Fill the container with  a mixture of two tablespoons of 
  bleach per gallon of water.  Let sit for 15 minutes, then drain.  
  Rinsing with clean water is optional, although if you do not rinse, 
  let air dry completely before using.
An airlock, in this case, is used to allow CO2 produced during 
  fermentation to escape while not letting air (and airborne bacteria) 
  in. There are a couple of different varieties; you may remember the 
  S-shaped ones from high school biology.  You can pick up one of these 
  at your local homebrew supply shop.  If there isn't such a shop in 
  your area, simply cover the top of the jug with some plastic wrap and 
  tie *loosely* with string, so that it's not completely sealed.
On yeast:  again, you can get packages of dry ale yeast from your 
  homebrew supply shop.  The fancy varieties of liquid yeast are 
  overkill; a 99-cent package of dry yeast (Red Star, Edme, M&F, etc.)  
  will do just fine.  Bread yeast would probably work fine, although 
  I've never tried it.
On bottling:  sanitize the bottles before filling, just like the 
  fermentation vessel.  If you use any auxilliary implements, like a 
  funnel, it wouldn't hurt to sanitize them too.  You can re-use the 
  white plastic screw caps on the 2l PET bottles; sanitize them as 
  well.
Geez, now I've probably made the whole operation sound like nuclear 
  physics.  Well, it ain't.  It is a little more like canning or 
  pickling, in that there are some safety concerns, although the 
  sanitizing is more to prevent off odors and flavors than to prevent 
  deadly diseases. Honestly, it's really pretty easy to do.  As the 
  homebrewers all say, "Relax, don't worry."  Have a ginger ale.

Ginger Ale
   1 gallon water
   1 pound white sugar (either granulated or corn will do)
 1/2 oz cream of tartar
   1 oz grated ginger
   1 lemon
     your favorite ale yeast
Boil water, stir in sugar, cream of tartar, ginger, and zest of lemon 
  (yellow part of peel).  Cool to pitching temperature (<75F), add 
  juice of lemon.  Transfer the whole mess to a sanitized fermentation 
  vessel, pitch yeast, and cap with an airlock.
Bottle after 48 hours, using strong bottles (champagne or 2l soda pop 
  bottles work well).  Let condition at room temperature for 2-3 days, 
  then refrigerate.
Helpful Hints:
You can use more ginger (up to 3-4 oz per gallon) to get spicier ginger 
  ale.
The jury is still out on whether it is necessary to peel the ginger. I 
  peel it simply because it's easier to grate that way.
Don't second guess the fermentation time, and don't be worried if the 
  air lock is still perking after 48 hrs.  If you let it go past 48 
  hrs, you will probably end up with somewhat flat, not-very-sweet 
  soda.
Please don't use regular beer bottles.  Champagne bottles are much 
  stronger.  2l PET bottles work very well because you can squeeze them 
  to see how carbonated they are, and relieve pressure if you're 
  worried.
Make sure you store the ginger ale in the fridge.  This will help 
  minimize any unwanted further fermentation.
Make in small quantities and drink soon.  The refrigerating will 
  *minimize* fermentation, not stop it, so eventually you will run the 
  risk of gushers or grenades.

>From  Sam Waring <[email-masked]>
Ginger Beer
    6 oz Ginger, fresh; bruised
    3 qt Water
    5 lb Loaf sugar
  1/4 lb Honey
  1/2 c  Lemon juice
   17 qt Water
    2    Drachms essence of lemon (about 2 ts)
    1    Egg
Put ginger and 3 quarts water into a very large kettle and boil for 30 
  minutes. Add sugar, honey, lemon juice and 17 quarts more water.
  Strain through a cloth and when it is cold, add essence of lemon and 
  egg. Let stand for 3-4 days before bottling. Yield: 1 serving.

>From  Sam Waring <[email-masked]>
Homemade ginger beer
    1 oz Ginger, fresh; peeled & -crushed
  1/3 c  Lime juice
         Lime peel; of 3 small
  1/2 c  Sugar
3 3/4 c  Water, boiling
  1/4 ts Yeast
  1/4 c  Water, lukewarm
Combine the crushed ginger, lime peel, juice and sugar in a jar or at 
  least one quart capacity.  Pour in the boiling water. Cover loosely 
  and let cool to room temp. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water 
  and add. Seal the jar as tightly as possible and let stand at room 
  temp overnight. Chill, strain and serve. Yield: 1 quart.

From: [email-masked] (David S Inman)
Ginger Beer on Dried Ground Ginger
  This recipe doesn't use ginger root - but it is good!
  First you need a starter . . .
Either Half fill a jam jar with tepid water, stir in one teaspoonful 
  sugar and one teaspoonful ground ginger, plus one teaspoonful dried 
  yeast; or, as above without yeast. Add one teaspoonful sugar every 
  day and leave uncovered in jar until fermentation starts by natural 
  yeast spores in the air. Then add one level teaspoonful ginger and 
  one of suger to starter and stir well each day for six days. On the 
  seventh day strain and halve the starter (keep one half for the next 
  batch).
To strained liquid add twelve English cups (120 fluid ounces) of cold 
  water, three cups sugar melted in four cups boiling water and juice 
  of two lemons. Bottle and cork (do not use screw tops, bottles might 
  explode) and keep for four days. Result is mildly alcoholic!

==========
4.9  Recipes calling for lots of herbs
=====
4.9.1  Gazpacho
-----
From: [email-masked] (Donna Beach)
White Gazpacho
  one qt buttermilk
  2 tbs cider or herb vinegar
  1 Tbs sugar or honey
  4-6 drops of tabasco or one teaspoon white pepper
  2 tgreen onions
  1 small sweet red bell pepper, diced
  1-2 cloves garlic
  2 stalks celery, cubed
  1 large cucumber, Peeled & seeded
  1 Tbs fresh dill chopped,
  1 Tbs fresh tarragon, chopped.
Put garlic and white parts of onion into food processor and chop. Then 
  add cuke and celery with vinegar and process till fairly smooth. 
  Combine buttermilk, sugar and white pepper or tobasco. Slice green 
  parts of onion. Combine all ingredients and chill before serving. May 
  be garnished with chopped red leaf lettuce or chopped tomatoes.

=====
4.9.2  Pesto
-----
Also see Using / preserving basil, 2.1.3, and Freezing your herbs, 4.4.

----- pesto recipes
From: [email-masked] (jnilsen)
    1 cup fresh Basil leaves, tightly packed
  2-3 cloves garlic
  1/4 cup frshly grated Parmesan cheese
  1/4 cup pine nuts
  1/4 cup olive oil
Process (or finely chop and mix) all but oil.  Slowly add oil.  Use.

From: [email-masked] (Donna Beach) 
I never really follow a recipe when I make pesto. I usually put 4-6 
  cloves of garlic in the food processor with 1/4 cup of olive oil and 
  a couple of tablespoons of herb vinegar and then chop the garlic. 
  Then I add at least 3-4 cups packed fresh sweet basil leaves and 3-4 
  tablespoons of ground almonds. Some people use ground pine nuts. And 
  1/4 cup or more of grated parmesan cheese (I like it fresh best). All 
  this gets processed till the basil is chopped fine.
I have seen this basic pest recipe to include one-to-several peeled 
  tomatoes--which is a great way to use up an abundance of tomatoes 
  from your garden.
Later in the year when there's not as much sweet basil, you can put 
  parsley into the mix. I have even seen a winter "pesto" made with 
  fresh sage, but to me, it's not pesto without fresh sweet basil, with 
  or without the tomatoes.

From: [email-masked] (Ruth J Fink-Winter)
This is one of my favorite pestos.
Asian Pesto
  1 clove garlic                  1" piece ginger root, peeled
  2 tblsp toasted sesame seeds    2 bunches cilantro, stems removed
  1 tblsp soy sauce               1 tblsp mirin or apple juice
  juice of 1 lime (about 3 tblsp) 1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce
  3 tblsp sesame oil (or less)    8 oz. soba noodles, cooked
Turn on food processor.  With motor running, drop garlic and ginger 
  into feed tube.  Add seeds and cilantro; pulse til finely chopped. 
  Add soy sauce, mirin or juice, and then slowly add oil in steady 
  stream until pesto is desired consistency. Toss with hot noodles.

From: [email-masked] (ANDREAS GUENIN)
Sundried Tomato Pesto
  1/2 cup blanched sundried tomatoes
  1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  2 Tbs. tomato paste
  3/4 cup olive oil
  1/2 tsp. dried thyme
  2 cloves of garlic
  1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
Combine everything except the oil in a food processor, and then slowly 
  add the olive oil while pureeing to the proper consistancy.

From: [email-masked] (Gregory R. Cook)
For a low fat (or no fat) alternative, cut down (or eliminate) the 
  olive oil and add fresh squeezed lemon juice until you get the 
  right consistency.  Personally, I like to use a little bit of 
  olive oil for the texture.  Also, walnuts are often substituted
  for pine nuts.

-----
> ... pesto turning brown...

From: Xiaoyan Ma <[email-masked]>
I grow sweet basils to make pesto.  But for some reason my pesto always 
turns brown (the surface only) within 2 minutes.
This is the recipe I have:
  1/2 cup chopped basil
  3 tbspoon parmesan cheese
  4 tbspoon olive oil
  2 tbspoon pinenut
  1 clove of garlic
  salt 
I put 3 times of each ingredient into the blender and blend it for 2 
  minutes then store the pesto in a jar.  I have tried a few times, the 
  same thing happens each time.  The pesto tastes good but looks awful.  
  When I mix the pesto with pasta, the whole thing turns brown right 
  away.  Can someone tell me what causes the problem?

From: [email-masked] (Stavros Macrakis)
Pesto (like guacamole) turns brown by oxidation.  One way to prevent 
  oxidation is to pour a thin layer of oil on top, or cover with 
  plastic wrap (touching the pesto).
Your pesto will probably also turn out better if you use a mortar and 
  pestle instead of a blender.  In fact, even a food processor seems to 
  work better than a blender.  And the traditional cheese to use is not 
  parmesan, but pecorino sardo (Sardinian ewe's milk cheese).
Unfortunately, good pecorino sardo is hard to get in the US, so you 
  might have to substitute pecorino romano, also known as just 
  "romano".

-----
From: [email-masked]
Pesto (Sorrel-Chive Herb Paste)
  1 c  Sorrel
  4 tb Shallots; finely minced
  4 tb Pine nuts; ground
  3 tb Parsley; chopped
  3 tb Chives; chopped
       Grated peel of 4 oranges
1/4    Onions, red; chopped
  1 tb Mustard, dry
  1 ts Salt
  1 ts Pepper, black
  1 pn Pepper, cayenne
3/4 c  Oil. olive
Wash the sorrel and dry it well, by hand or in a salad spinner. Chop 
  the sorrel coarsely, and again squeeze away any liquid.  Blend the 
  sorrel, shallots, pine nuts, parsley, chives, orange peel and onion 
  in a food processor or blender.  (If using a blender, make sure these  
  ingredients are already finely chopped.)  Add dry mustard, salt, 
  pepper and cayenne, and mix again. SLOWLY drizzle in the oil while 
  the blade is moving. Transfer to tempered glass jars and store in 
  refrigerator (for up to 8 to 10 weeks) or in the freezer for up to a 
  year.
NOTES:  Sorrel's peak season is summer, although you can find hothouse 
  sorrel year round in some stores.  You may reduce the amount of 
  orange peel by 1/4 or 1/2 if you'd like to emphasize the sorrel or 
  other flavors. Walnuts or almonds may be substituted for the pine 
  nuts.

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> I would like to hear from others about alternatives for using pesto.

From: [email-masked] (Wendi L Gardner)
I grow lots of basil and make tons of pesto.  what to do with all of 
  that pesto?  yes pasta, yes bread, but other fun things to do with 
  pesto...
(1) smash it into cream cheese (the ratio of pesto to cream cheese that 
  I prefer is 1:3, but you can go more or less, obviously.)  add 
  garlic, some plumped (blanched) sun dried tomatoes, whatever else you 
  fancy - yum!
(2) toss pesto with white beans and vidalia onions, serve this 
  concoction hot on a bed of fresh spinach.
(3) mix pesto with vegetable broth, toss in whatever veggies you have 
  in the fridge and some macaroni, (i like broccoli, carrots, 
  cauliflower, and rotini for this) and you have soup.
(4) find the juiciest beefsteak tomato you can...slice in half, slather 
  with pesto, broil till bubbly.  messy, but with a good quality 
  tomato--- more than worth the mess!
(5) fill mushroom caps with pesto plus a cheese (the pesto cream cheese 
  mixture in #1 is good for this) sprinkle with bread crumbs and broil.

From: [email-masked] (Michelle Marie Manke) 
Make pizza with a layer of pesto on the crust, then mozarella cheese, 
  then dotted with feta. Try using reduced-fat mozarella, and 
  scattering black olives & fresh tomatoes on top!

From: [email-masked] (Sarah G.) 
Pesto and potatoes: On baked potatoes, swirled into mashed potatoes, 
  mixed into homefried potatoes, used as a dipping sauce for french 
  fries.
Make soup and swirl a spoonful into each bowl before serving.
Blend the pesto with vinegar and oil, or your favorite vinaigrette, and 
  use as salad dressing
Make into soup... sautee some veggies, add broth and pesto, and simmer 
  for pesto soup.
Thin it and use as a marinade for tofu, potatoes and veggies, then 
  grill.
Use it for garlic bread filling (or is that what you meant?)  Or you 
  could use it to smear over homemade bread before it comes out of the 
  oven as a glaze
Sliced ripe tomatoes layered on a plate with pesto, and fresh 
  waterpacked mozzerella.
It's easy to make a dairy free pesto.  Instead of using cheese, either 
  use a mild flavored miso paste or SoyMage pretend grated cheese, 
  which is completely vegan (no casein).  I usually just leave the 
  cheese out altogether, letting the flavor of the basil, garlic, olive 
  oil and nuts show through.

From: [email-masked] (Jennifer Norris)
  I make a potato salad with it.  Instead of the usual mayonaisse, I add 
  pesto.  Besides potatoes, I add fresh snap peas, green onions, and if 
  I want to make it a really substantial meal, black beans.  Gets rave 
  revues....

=====
4.9.3  Miscellanious
-----
From: [email-masked] (Donna Beach)
Potatoes with Tarragon
  one large onion
  1 tablesppon oil
  4 medium potatoes.
  1 bay leaf
  3 Tb.-1/4 cup vinegar
  salt & pepper to taste
  one tablesppon chopped fresh tarragon
Chop onion and sautee till transparent. Peel and slice potatoes, 
  1/4" thick. Add to onions and sautee for a couple of minutes, then 
  add bay leaf, tarragon, salt and pepper. Add about 1/2 cup water to 
  the skillet, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 30 minutes 
  or so--till the potatoes are done. Stir from time to time to make sure 
  they aren't sticking and adding extra water if needed. Serve with
  the pan drippings. 
I've seen a similar recipe using rosemary instead of tarragon.

-----
> I'm seeking a recipe for ginger salad dressing (like you get at a 
  Japanese steak house)
>From  Sam Waring <[email-masked]>:
Ginger Dressing
   2 T  Ginger, fresh; peeled & -coarsely chopped
   2 T  Dijon mustard
   2 ts Hoisin sauce
   1 T  Balsamic vinegar
   1 T  Soy sauce, light
        Cayenne pepper; to taste
   1 T  Sherry
   2 T  Sesame oil
 1/4 c  Oil
Blend ingredients in blender or processor.  Makes about 1 1/2 cups. 

=====
4.9.4  Spice mixes
-----

From: [email-masked]
Cajun Spice
    9 ts Pepper, cayenne
4 1/2 ts Pepper, black
4 1/2 ts Salt, sea
    6 ts Oregano, dried, ground
    6 ts Thyme, dried
    6 ts Fennel, dried
    6 ts Cumin, ground
    6 ts Cardamon, ground
    6 ts Garlic powder
    6 ts Chile powder
    6 ts Coriander, dried
Whirl in blender or mix all together by hand and fill up jar to store.
Source: A Vegetarians Ecstasy, by Natalie Cederquist and James Levin, 
  M.D.

From: [email-masked]
Cajun Spice Mix
   1 c  Sweet paprika
   1 ts Paprika
   1 tb Pepper, black
   1 tb Pepper, white
   3 tb Pepper, Cayenne
   1 tb Garlic powder
   1 tb Onion powder
   1 tb Salt
   1 tb Rosemary
Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend together. I usually put 
  in twice the amount of cayenne for my taste.

From: [email-masked]
Jim Echols' Cajun Spice
   1 tb Paprika
   1 ts Salt
   1 ts Onion powder
   1 ts Cayenne powder
   1 ts Garlic powder
   1 ts Crushed chilies
   1 ts Ginger powder
 3/4 ts Pepper, white
 3/4 ts Pepper, black
 1/2 ts Thyme
 1/2 ts Oregano
Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl.  Store in an airtight 
  container. Use in preparing blackened (cajun) trout. -- A special 
  surprise for guests at shore lunches. Also try it in hamburgers, on 
  sauteed chicken or turkey, and on popcorn.
>From  Calgary Herald, by Terry Bullick (89.05.03)

==========
5  Sites to see 
-----

==========
5.1  FTP sites
-----

Lawrence London on sunSITE keeps archives of alt.folklore.herbs :
ftp sunSITE.unc.edu /pub/academic/medicine/alternative-healthcare/
    discussion-groups/alt.folklore.herbs/ 
and rec.gardens :
ftp sunSITE.unc.edu /pub/academic/agriculture/sustainable_agriculture/
    gardening/discussion-groups/rec.gardens/
besides a LOT of other newsgroups.

I keep herblist logs on sunSITE:
ftp sunSITE.unc.edu /pub/academic/medicine/alternative-healthcare/
    herbal-medicine/archives/herblist/

==========
5.2  WWW pages
-----
Algy's Herb page contains a wealth of information. Go see it under
  http://frank.mtsu.edu/~sward/herb.html 
The netscape version is kept updated.

There is a searchable database of factsheets on Ohio State 
University's WebGarden. Search for specific herbs to find factsheets 
on them:
  http://hortwww-2.ag.ohio-state.edu/FactsheetFind.html

My herbal homepage sports the medicinal herbFAQ, which mentions LOTS
of sites to see, but mainly on medicinal herbs:
  http://sunsite.unc.edu/herbmed

Or try the Garden Gate:
  http://www.prairienet.org/garden-gate/

==========
THE END.
==========