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April 6, 2005

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Basil: Variety is the Spice of Life

Guest post by Kelly Gilliam

What do you think of when you imagine basil? The scent of a summer herb garden filling your nostrils? The taste of a nice pesto on a cool evening? Bees rushing around feverishly from tiny flower to tiny flower? Or maybe it’s just the different textures, sizes, shapes and tastes that spring to your mind when you ponder the dozens of available varieties of basil-and there are dozens to say the least. The ever-popular sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) is the most commonly seen in kitchen gardens and windowsills alike. However, it is limiting to restrict yourself to only this kind of basil. Each variety can uniquely enrich not only the flavour of your cooking, but also the look of your garden.

Despite their variations in flavour and appearance, the different types of basil are similarly easy to care for. Being a plant of tropical Asian descent, basil likes well-drained soil and plenty of light, ideally bright direct afternoon sun. One thing that my years of raising basil have taught me is that the plant must not be waterlogged; allowing the soil to dry out between waterings helps greatly. I have also found it easier to grow basil in a container than in the ground. Moisture levels can be more easily monitored in a container, and if the initial location is not immediately beneficial, the plant can easily be moved to another spot. For containers, I always pick something shallow, like a pot made for bulbs or succulents. Basil has shallow roots and placing it in a more shallow pot allows the roots to reach out in a more natural manner and also to stay warm, something which is essential for basil to grow strong and healthy.

Thousands of years ago, basil was the subject of much debate in the realm of herbal medicine. While some embraced the herb as not only a wonderful source of flavour but also of relief for digestive ailments, other ancient herbalists claimed that basil damaged internal organs and caused insanity, coma, and the spontaneous generation of assorted detrimental parasites and arachnids, such as lice and scorpions! However, the Roman naturalist Pliny himself was a proponent of the good that basil exacted upon the human body and was the first to suggest that it alleviates flatulence, something which modern pharmacology supports. Basil has also been shown to relieve nausea and stomach upset when administered as a tea, much like its mint cousins.

Following are eight common varieties of basil that are relatively easy to find and should be in stock in your local nursery in the spring. Of course this is only a small sampling of the dozens of varieties available. My best suggestion would be to get as many varieties as you can and experiment with the different flavours by adding the fresh leaves to your cooking. After all, when you cook with herbs you’ve raised yourself, it always gives you a new appreciation of your food. Remember to go herb shopping early to get the best selection.

Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
Sweet basil is easily the variety most frequently seen in herb (or any) gardens. It has a strong, almost tart flavour when fresh, but when dried, its flavour sweetens. This particular variety has a mild initial taste which lasts on the tip of the tongue. The aftertaste is strong and lingers in the back of the throat, almost leaving a sensation in your nose.

African Blue Basil (Ocimum kilimanscharium x Ocimum basilicum purpurescens)
This is a personal favourite of mine. The fresh leaves have a strong initial flavour, which is much sweeter than sweet basil. Not only is the flavour more enjoyable, but it also has gorgeous green foliage streaked with purple veins, and deep purple flower heads. Its texture is also a surprise to most people who are used to sweet basil. While most basils have a very smooth leaf, African blue basil is fuzzy and almost rough, something you can also taste when it is added to a dish. It does not have an overpowering aftertaste, and does not linger in the back of the mouth as sweet basil does. As if these factors were not enough to ensure a permanent spot in my favourite basil list, African blue basil is also very easy to grow, and sends out new shoots incredibly quickly.

Lemon Basil (Ocimum americanum)
This basil is true to its name-one sniff and one would swear one was in a lemon orchard. Initially, it tastes almost the same as most basils, but its slight aftertaste resembles that of lemon balm. It has a very mild flavour, and while it smells beautiful, the ‘lemon’ in the name does trick one into expecting something that tastes a little more lemony. That aside, it is a nice addition to the garden, and a nice addition to a recipe that may call for citrus highlights. I have had more trouble growing this basil than any other. I had two plants, one which received sun for about seven hours a day, and another which received sun for about three hours. Both were leggy despite being pinched back, and were very slow growing despite optimum soil and water.

Thai Basil (Ocimum basilicum ‘Thai’)
As the name might suggest, this variety had a very spicy flavour with a slight hint of licorice, but with a nice mild aftertaste. Along with the African blue basil I found this one very fast and easy to grow, and also quite pleasing to the eye. It produced flower heads that were deep burgundy, which contrasted nicely against this variety’s pale green leaves. This is also a favourite of mine, and goes well in any dish with heavy spices. This is the herb for all your authentic Thai curries!

Cinnamon Basil (Ocimum basilicum ‘Cinnamon’)
This variety is very true to its name, and had a distinct cinnamon aftertaste. Although initially it very much resembles the tartness of sweet basil, it has a cool flavour that would probably be excellent for a cold dish that called for the addition of basil.

Spicy Globe Basil (Ocimum basilicum ‘Minimum’)
This basil is actually milder than the variety name would have you believe. While it is excellent for a container or smaller spaces because of its tiny leaves (measuring 1-1½ cm long) and compact growth habit, its flavour very closely resembles that of sweet basil. It does have a slight sage flavour, and would probably be excellent in complimenting sage in a dish.

Rubin Basil (Ocimum basilicum ‘Purpurascens’)
Also known as Dark Opal Basil. It has dark purple/reddish foliage which adds a sharp contrast to any herb garden. It has a strong dry bite with a taste that lingers on the tongue and leaves your mouth feeling parched. While it is a good strong basil, which I’m sure some must love, I found myself valuing it more for its dark purple leaves instead of its rather acerbic taste.

Green Bush Basil (unknown, might be another variety of O. basilicum ‘Minimum’)
This is another variety of basil excellent for growing in containers. It is small, and has much the same growth habit as spicy globe basil. However, instead of dark purple its flower heads are straight green like the rest of the plant. Also unlike spicy globe basil, it has more of an actual spiced flavour. It has a delicious aftertaste, which stays strong but does not overwhelm the senses like some basils have a tendency to do.

Baked Lemon Basil Chicken
Ingredients:
2 pieces of boneless & skinless chicken breast
1 good handful of lemon basil
3 sprigs of African blue basil
½ cup of water
¼ cup of olive oil
1 sprig of rosemary
1 sprig of tri-colour sage
1 tsp lemon juice
dash of pepper
1. Combine all herbs, oil, water, pepper & lemon juice in blender and liquefy.

2. Place defrosted chicken breast in marinade in a sealable container and place in the fridge over night.

3. When you are ready to prepare dinner, take out the chicken breast and place it in a baking pan that is lightly coated with olive oil.

4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

5. Take the rest of the marinade and paint it onto the breasts. Place chicken in the oven with the cover on for 30-45 minutes or untilgolden brown. For extra flavour, add a thin slice or two of lemon to the top of the chicken while baking.

Serves 2

Herb & Veggie Fried Rice
Ingredients:
1 cup of rice
½ yellow pepper
2 tbsp of onion
1 tbsp of sunflower oil
3 large mushrooms
One sprig of fresh rosemary
One sprig of fresh thai basil
6-7 leaves of fresh sage
1. Pick your favourite kind of rice and prepare.

2. Once the rice is cooked, take out a fry pan and coat with the sunflower oil. Place rice in the pan and start to cook over low-medium heat.

3. Chop onions, pepper, mushrooms, rosemary, sage and basil and add to rice. Cook until rice is slightly browned and flavours have infused. Peppers, onions and mushrooms should be tender.

4. This can be used as a meal or as a side dish.

Makes 3-4 servings.

Bibliography
Claire Kowalchik and William H. Hylton, ed. Rodale’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs. Pennsylvania: Rodal Press, 1998.

Inge N. Dobelis ed. Magic and Medicine of Plants. New York: The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc., 1989.

Kelly Gilliam is a full-time greenhouse employee from the Greater Vancouver, B.C. area gardening out of primarily containers due to her urban enclosure. Because of her discount at work she is utterly hopeless about bringing home plants, doing it on a weekly basis. Her favourites are any kinds of cacti and succulents, which she also obsessively cultivates from seed. When she’s not at work or puttering around the local second-hand shops for interesting junk she runs Devileye.net.

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February 27, 2003

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Annual Bath & Beauty Pot

Guest post by Eleanor Athens

There are so many herbs that make fantastic skin care ingredients. The three in this project – borage, chamomile and calendula – are all annuals.

Start your pot in the spring after the last frost using the two-inch herbs available at most nurseries. Your pot will need good drainage, rich soil and a full-sun location.

Plant one of each in a shallow 18-inch round. Or, for a more formal presentation, center the borage in the middle of a larger pot and surround with three calendula plants. Next plant chamomile, 3-5 plants depending on pot, size around the edges. The chamomile will spill over the pot sides.

Expect flowers throughout the summer and into fall. Bright yellow-orange calendula adds a splash of color against the pretty daisy-like chamomile blossoms and star-shaped borage flowers.

For the following bath and beauty recipes, you will be harvesting both flowers and leaves.

Borage Toner

This project starts with a simple vinegar infusion, which is diluted for use as a toner after cleansing. Borage is high in minerals and mucilage, which makes it a great soothing skin-care herb. It has a cooling, refreshing effect.

You will need:

Borage sprigs, flowers and leaves
Organic vinegar, apple cider or white
Distilled water
Clean glass jar or bottle

Place the borage in your glass vessel and cover completely with vinegar. Store in a cool, dark place for 1-2 weeks, shaking occasionally. Strain well (several layers of cheesecloth is a good option), and dilute 1 Tbsp vinegar in 1 cup of distilled water. Store in a clean glass bottle or mister.

Calendula Oil

A wonderful body or massage oil based on an infusion of calendula. Calendula, or pot marigold, is loved for its healing and soothing qualities. It is important to use cold-pressed oil because it hasn’t been solvent-processed or had its nature altered by the application of heat.

You will need:

Calendula flowers
Organic olive oil (cold-pressed)
Clean glass jar

Collect enough flower heads to almost fill your jar. Place on clean paper towels and allow them to rest for about 30 minutes. Add your flowers to the jar and cover with oil. Cap tightly and keep covered in a warm place for a week. Strain thoroughly and store oil in a clean glass jar or bottle.

Chamomile Tea

The simplest of beauty recipes, chamomile tea makes a fantastic hair rinse for blonds, or can be added to the bath for a relaxing, fresh-smelling soak. Chamomile is well known for it’s anti-inflammatory properties, and has a great apple scent.

You will need:

Fresh chamomile, both leaves and flowers
Distilled water

Use chamomile: water in a 1:2 proportion, that is, 1 cup of chamomile to 2 of water. Place the ingredients in a saucepan and simmer, covered, over low heat for 20 minutes. Cool, strain, and use your tea right away.

Other Great Bath and Beauty Herbs

Try experimenting with the following herbs using the recipes above. Choose your favorites for their scent and skin care properties.

Basil (leaves): green and spicy scent, stimulates dull skin.
Fennel (seeds): earthy, licorice aroma, used to tone and tighten skin.
Lavender (flowers): distinctive floral/herbaceous scent, ideal for all skin types.
Peppermint (leaves): refreshing and cool, good for oily or congested skin.
Rosemary (leaves): stimulating camphorous aroma, tonic for oily skin.
Eleanor Athens, is the founder of E aromachologic fragrance oils; scents created from pure essential oils and perfumer’s absolutes. Her interests in phyto- and aromatherapy led to the creation of a fragrance line that uses natural, organic, and cruelty-free ingredients to enhance the well-being of the wearer. Visit www.aromachologic.com.

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October 22, 2002

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Healthier Pumpkin Pie

This recipe uses arrowroot powder mixed with milk or soy milk in the place of eggs to thicken the filling. Sugar is substituted with maple syrup. The quantity of maple syrup used in this recipe is minimal. More can be added if you have a heavy sweet tooth, but do keep in mind that maple syrup is quite sweet. If you have problems with gluten any kind of gluten free flour can be used but I prefer the taste of spelt as an alternative to wheat.

Filling

1 medium sized pumpkin or 1 can pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons maple syrup (or more to taste)
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp fresh grated nutmeg (or nutmeg powder)
1/8 tsp ground cloves
pinch of salt
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1 cup milk or soy milk

Crust
(Makes enough for a bottom crust with decorative top.)

2 cups spelt, kamut or whole wheat flour
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup chilled butter
6 tablespoon ice water

Crust option: a mix of half butter, half canola oil works best in my opinion, but all canola oil for a vegan pie also works very well.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325º F. Cut pumpkin(s) in half and remove seeds. Place cut side down on a tray and bake in the oven until the pumpkin is soft and easily poked with a fork. Scoop the flesh from the pumpkin and mash or puree in a food processor or blender. As an option I often bake the pumpkin(s) cut side up (so pumpkin half acts like a bowl) and sprinkle with half of the spices and a drizzle of maple syrup so that the flavours bake right into the pumpkin.
While the pumpkin is cooking you can go ahead and prepare the crust. Mix together the flour, oil, butter and ice water. This can be done manually in a bowl or using a mixer. As an option different flour types can be used, but I prefer the nutty flavour of spelt.
Divide the dough in half and roll between two pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper.
Dissolve the arrowroot powder in the milk using a blender or food processor until the mixture is smooth. Add the pumpkin, maple syrup, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cloves, and blend to a smooth consistency. Pour the mixture into the pie crust.
Roll out the remaining dough thinly. Use fall-themed cookie cutters (i.e leaves or turkeys) to create shapes that can be placed together on top of the pie to form a “top crust”. Place one shape in the center of the pie and form a ring of shapes around that central shape. Try to place the shapes so that they touch or join slightly.
Bake for 35 minutes or until the crust is browned and the filling is slightly set. It is sometimes difficult to tell when spelt or whole wheat flours are browned but there will be a noticeable colour change. Don’t leave it in until it is too brown! This pie sets up nicely after the pie has been left to cool for a few hours. Do not worry if the centre appears too soft when it is first removed from the oven. This baby will thicken up due to the miracle coagulation powers of arrowroot.

More Options: The cookie cutter top makes for a fancy-looking pie that will impress your friends, but it isn’t necessary. You can always use the other half of the dough to make another pie!

I have also made these as “personal pies” done in 3″ tart tins with one cookie cut per tin. They’re really cute!

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October 4, 2002

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Winter Flowers

Guest post by Beate Schwirtlich

It costs nothing to bring the branches of flowering trees indoors for forcing. A mild day late in the winter or early in the spring is a good time to prune apple and other flowering trees anyway and collecting a few branches won’t damage the tree or shrub. So you might as well enjoy the branches before hauling them to the compost.

The pussy willow (salix discolor) is the poster child of blooming branches. Its catkins or ‘fuzzies’ are actually flowers hanging from the branches. But there are a whole bunch of other trees whose branches can be forced to bloom indoors–many much more brightly than the popular willow. It’s as easy as cutting the right branches, bringing them home, and sitting them in water. Forced branches will bloom two to four weeks after cutting.

Follow These Easy Instructions for Forcing

Collect branches on a mild day.
Look for branches with lots of buds.
Cut stems of medium thickness.
Make a diagonal cut at base of stem.
Remove any branches or buds from the bottom part of the stem.
Recut the stems and change the water every few days.

Try Forcing Branches from These Plants

apple
almond
spice bush
wisteria
forsythia
cherry
plum
hawthorn
flowering quince
witch hazel
mock orange
pussy willow
cherry
lilac
horse chestnuts

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September 5, 2002

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Weeds in Your Garden — Bite Back!

By Susun Weed

I always say the gardener’s best revenge is to eat the weeds. I’ve been doing it for thirty years and can testify that my health and the health of my garden has never been better. Here are a few hints for gardeners who’d rather eat their weeds than hate them (and for non-gardeners who are adventurous enough to try out nature’s bounty).

View your weeds as cultivated plants; give them the same care and you’ll reap a tremendous harvest. Harvest frequently and do it when the weeds are young and tender. Thin your weeds and pinch back the annuals so your weeds become lushly leafy. Use weeds as rotation crops; they bring up subsoil minerals and protect against many insects. “Interplant” (by not weeding out) selected weeds; try purslane, lamb’s quarters, or amaranth with your corn, chickweed with peas/beans, and yellow dock, sheep sorrel, or dandelion with tomatoes). And, most importantly, harvest your weeds frequently, regularly, and generously.

Overgrown radishes, lettuces, and beans are tough and bitter. So are weeds that aren’t harvested frequently enough. Give your chickweed a haircut (yes! with scissors) every 4-7 days and it will stay tender all spring, ready to be added to any salad. If you forget a patch for two weeks, it may get stringy and tough and full of seed capsules. (All is not lost at this stage. The seeds are easy to collect—put the entire plant in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for 2-3 days and use the seeds that fall to the bottom of the bag—and highly nutritious, with exceptional amounts of protein and minerals.

Unthinned carrots and lettuces grow thin and spindly, so do unthinned lamb’s quarters, amaranth, and other edible weeds. Wherever you decide to let the weeds grow, keep them thinned as you would any plant you expect to eat. Here’s how I do it: In early spring I lightly top-dress a raised bed with my cool-method compost (which is loaded with the seeds of edible weeds). Over this I strew a heavy coating of the seeds of lettuces and cresses and brassicas (cultivated salad greens), then another light covering of shifted compost.

Naturally, weed seeds germinate right along with my salad greens. When the plant are about two inches high, I go through the bed and thin the salad greens, pull out all grasses, smartweeds, cronewort, clear weed, and quick weed (though the last three are edible, I don’t find them particularly palatable). And, I thin back the chickweed, mallows, lamb’s quarters, amaranth, and garlic mustard and other edible wild greens.

Keep those annuals pinched back. You wouldn’t let your basil go straight up and go to flower, don’t let your lamb’s quarter either. One cultivated lamb’s quarter plant in my garden grew five feet high and four feet across, providing greens for salads and cooking all summer and a generous harvest of seeds for winter use.

When a crop of greens has bolted or gone to seed in your garden, you pull it all out and replant with another crop. Do the same with your weeds. We eat the greens of garlic mustard all spring, then pull it out just before it bolts (making a horseradishy vinegar from the choicest roots) — often revealing a generous crop of chickweed lurking underneath.

Some of My Favorite Garden Weeds

Annuals

Amaranth (Amaranthus retroflexus)
Young leaves, old leaves, even non-woody stalks are delicious as a cooked green; chop and boil for 30-40 minutes. Serve in their own broth; freeze leftovers for winter use. Use instead of spinach in quiche (you may never to grow spinach again). Collect seeds throughout the autumn by shaking seed heads over a lipped cookie sheet; or by harvest and dry the entire seed head. Winnowing out the chaff is tedious but soothing. There is a special thrill that comes when you toss the chaffy seed in the air, and the breeze catches it just-so, and the seeds fall back into your tray, while the prickly chaff scatters “to the four winds.”

Chickweed (Stellaria media)
Young leaves and stalks, even flowers, in salads. Blend with virgin olive oil and organic garlic for an unforgettable pesto. Add seeds to porridge.

Lamb’s Quarter (Chenopodium alba and related species, e.g. Chenopodium quinoa)
Young leaves in salads. Older leaves and tender stalks cooked. Leaves dried and ground into flour (replaces up to half the flour in any recipe). Seeds dried and cooked in soups, porridge.

Mallows (Malva neglecta and related species)
Leaves of any age and flowers (the closely related Hibiscus flowers too!) are delicious in salads. Roots are used medicinally.

Purslane (Portulacca oleracea)
The fleshy leaves and stalks of this plant are incredibly delicious in salads and not bad at all preserved in vinegar for winter use.

Biennials

Burdock (Arctium lappa)
Roots of non-flowering plants harvested after frost make a vinegar that is deep, and richly flavorful as well as a world-renowned tonic. Petioles of the leaves and the flowering stalk are also edible.

Garlic Mustard (Alliaria officinalis)
Year-round salad green. Leaves used in any season, even winter. Roots are harvested before plant flowers. Seeds are a spicy condiment.

Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota)
Leaves finely chopped in salads. Flowers are beautiful edible decorations. Roots of non-flowering plants, harvested in the fall, and cooked.

Perennials

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinalis)
Leaves eaten at any time, raw or cooked, but especially tasty in the fall ? not spring! Roots harvested any time; pickle in apple cider vinegar for winter use. Dandelion flower wine is justly famous.

Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella)
Leaves add a sour spark to salads. Cooked with wild leeks or cultivated onion and potato they become a soup called “schav.”

Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica)
Young leaves cooked for 40-45 minutes and served in their broth are one of my favorite dishes. Seeds can be used in baked goods, porridge.

Yellow Dock (Rumex crispus) Roots pickled in apple cider vinegar are tasty and a boon for enriching the blood. Leaves, especially young ones, are eaten raw or cooked.

Susun Weed, green witch and wise woman, is an extraordinary teacher with a joyous spirit, a powerful presence, and an encyclopedic knowledge of herbs and health. Ms. Weed’s four herbal medicine books focus on women’s health topics including: menopause, childbearing, and breast health. For more please visit www.susunweed.com.

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