basil and cilantro

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clay&crabgrass
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basil and cilantro

Post by clay&crabgrass » May 18th, 2010, 11:36 am

both mainstays in the kitchen here. both easy to grow. here's a basil/pesto article, with recipes, enjoy--
http://www.inmamaskitchen.com/ITALIAN_C ... Pesto.html

cilantro is used in Mexican/Spanish, Indian, Thai cooking. google recipes.

wonderful green stuff from the garden. if your growing tomatoes, grow some basil and cilantro for an olive oil, garlic, pepper dressing. very simple, very good.

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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by MorpheusPA » May 18th, 2010, 11:46 am

+1! I grew basil a number of years ago, starting from those rooted plants from the grocery store that you're supposed to use the leaves from and throw away. By July, I had enough basil to feed most of the city...

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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by cactus » May 18th, 2010, 12:21 pm

I like using cilantro to make a pesto - substitute roasted pecans for the pine nuts, and sometimes I add in some roasted corn for flavor and texture. Dang stuff grows like a weed, though.

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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by clay&crabgrass » May 18th, 2010, 4:41 pm

"using cilantro to make a pesto"

pecans and roasted corn, wow, sounds sort of Texas fusion. I like that. one of the Italian recipes for pesto includes some fine diced prosciutto ham, I like to take that down to New Orleans with some Tasso (pork, coated in cayenne pepper, smoked).

ever have any luck growing sweet corn? I'm looking forward to some good meals out of the garden this summer. need to plan more and either buy a freezer or get into the canning thing.

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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by freyja5 » May 18th, 2010, 5:51 pm

I planted two types of basil last year (red ruben and sweet basil) in a container and had been prepared for them not to thrive (based on information from a few people I know who told me that basil is terribly difficult to grow). Well, it almost took over my entire pot! I had more basil than I knew what to do with, but unfortunately it flowered before I got it picked to dry it (we were out of town for about 10 days).

Is it true that once it flowers, the leaves are too bitter to use? That's what I was told, by the same people who said it was difficult to grow. In any case, I didn't end up using very much of it but when the leaves were young, it sure was good.

We use our rosemary and chives much more than the basil. I've had to plant a second rosemary plant this spring, because we use so much of it that my first plant doesn't get a chance to really grow well. Excellent on roasted potatoes.

C&CG - I found canning very handy. I had my first go at it in the fall, when the majority of the fruit on my patio tomato didn't ripen. I picked almost a gallon of green tomatoes and made mincemeat for pies and tarts. I'm going to try peaches and cherries this year, although I don't grow them myself. Wish I had room for a large garden.


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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by Dchall_San_Antonio » May 19th, 2010, 12:06 am

Can you grow cilantro this time of year? Ours doesn't go into the ground until October and it peters out about Feb.

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Re: basil and cilantro

Post by clay&crabgrass » May 21st, 2010, 6:09 am

basil and cilantro are easy to grow, if your wife is doing it, hehehehehe.
basil seems to be a very hearty plant for this area(likes the heat and humidity), green leaf and purple leaf grow like weeds. pick the leaves for whatever recipe your making.
cilantro is grown in pots and apparently she has some schedule for moving them in or out of the house. (read this article--http://www.tastefulgarden.com/Cilantro.htm)

chives sound good, have to look at more recipes calling for rosemary too.

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