In that spirit, I have been drying my garden oregano, my mint, my lavender, rosemary and sage. This year is no different and with a big garden patch of mint, I've put a lot of it in my mint jar for the winter. Mom always made us sweet mint tea whenever we had tummy aches, and I love it's soothing qualities. Even though today I prefer the tea without sugar and I also make it hot or cold, I still enjoy my cup of mint tea.
I've had some wonderful rose-petal tea at a friend's house and I looked online for edible dried rose petals to make some and also to use in some of the middle-eastern recipes from my new favorite cookbook, Jerusalem. Somehow, I couldn't feel sure that the petals came from pesticide-free plants and that they were indeed edible.
When my fragrant roses had an abundance of blooms, I had an idea! Why not dry my own rose petals? I also could make my own rose petal preserves(which are amazing!)
Drying herbs is easy to do:
Pick the herbs and roses at their peak. Wash under a soft stream of water taking care not to crush them.
Drying oregano
Lay out on the counter or a side board some thick paper towels or kitchen towels.
Shake any water from the herbs and lay out on the towels to dry. This may take several days, especially if it's humid, like it has been around here lately. When they are completely dry, you can put your herbs in small glass jars and save for the winter months when you won't be able to get them fresh from your garden. I love knowing that the herbs I use came from my own back yard, where no pesticides or fertilizers have been used.
Always remember that dried herbs are more potent than fresh. In your recipes, use less of the dried herbs than if they were fresh.
Enjoy!
Maria
