It’s that time of year again when our edible gardens are coming to an end for fresh herbs, but it doesn’t mean we have to live without them throughout the cooler seasons. Natural culinary herbs can remain plentiful throughout the year by bringing them indoors, or by drying them for seasoning, freezing them for pesto, or using them to flavor oils and vinegars.
The best time of year to harvest herbs is usually mid-summer right before flowering when the oils of the plants are at their peak flavor, but if you haven’t already done so, it’s not necessarily too late.
Kathy
Some herbs such as rosemary, sage, and mint will do well all winter near a sunny window or under a growth light. Annuals such as basil may grow indoors for a couple of months, but it will not last all winter therefore it’s best to harvest herbs such as basil, cilantro, and biennial parsley now and use them for either drying or making pesto and sauces. Pesto and herb sauces can be easily stored by freezing in bags or ice cube trays.
Before bringing any herb plants indoors from the outside, first cut back the plants to remove any old dead parts. Then rinse the leaves off very well, especially the underside to wash away any pests that may be on the plant.
There are certain soaps for washing plants to be brought indoors, but I often find water is all I need. If your herbs are not already in containers for bringing indoors, dig a small section out of the ground to place into a planter after cutting back and rinsing.
If you have any perennial herbs in containers that you will not be taking indoors or drying, please don’t put them to waste! Every year I end up with an abundance of perennial herbs that I grow in containers on my deck for both the flowers and for a quick reach when I’m in the middle of cooking.
Rather than letting these plants die off I instead find a nice place in my garden or yard to plant them in to provide a larger stock for next year. Additional herbs are also a great way of filling in bare spots or adding more color to your present gardens, and they attract butterflies, bees and other wildlife.
Don’t worry if you haven’t many herbs of your own to work with, it’s not too late to visit some local farm stands, nurseries, and farmers’ markets to buy up what they have left.
While some herb farms are closing for the season, The Herbery in Old Saybrook continues to have plenty of herbs in their garden, and they have some small potted hardier herbs including rosemary to keep inside for the winter. Gilberties in Westport has fresh culinary herbs year round, and they will be offering a future class on cold frames for growing your own herbs. Martha’s Herbary in Pomfret is open year round as well. For other information and locations please see the list below.
The best time of the day to harvest herbs for drying is early morning on a dry and sunny day when you do not anticipate any rain. To begin the process clip and gather the best parts of the plants.
Keep the plants separated so you can be sure to identify them later. Once gathered, drying herbs can be done several ways, but no matter how you dry them it is best to rinse them first and then quickly blot the water off with a paper towel or air dry the herbs outside.
Once the herbs are cut you can either dry them in bunches by tying a sting around the end and then hang upside down, or place them in a pan or on a screen to let the sun dry them naturally. Drying in the sun may leach out some of the oils and flavor, but it’s a matter of preference. Some people prefer to dry them in the oven, or get the last bit of moisture out the plant by a few seconds in the microwave.
Be careful if you use any heat method since the herbs can burn quickly. It is important to dry herbs thoroughly before storing away in order to prevent any mildew, and for this reason I often take a chance and carefully heat my herbs in the oven for a few minutes and then cool them down before jarring.
Drying herbs indoors can take up to seven to ten days before placing into a jar. Although it is best to dry herbs using the hanging method to allow all of the oils to drip down the leaves, I still prefer drying them in the sun on a pan if there happens to be a few sunny days in a row.
If this is not possible I find a place in my kitchen to hang them wherever my cats can’t reach. If you decide to dry indoors by hanging it is best to place a paper bag around the herbs to catch both the leaves and seeds as they fall.
When the plant is dried the leaves will fall off easily by running your fingers down the stem. You can then crunch the herb leaves into smaller particles for sprinkling onto food later. Be careful to remove all of the stems from oregano and thyme.
Place the dried herbs in a labeled jar with a date. Computer labels work best, this way you can use the same document the next year with a different date. Most dried herbs will last one year, after one year they lose their flavor.
For freezing, rinse and dry off all of the moisture first, you can use a salad spinner for a quick dry process. Chop the herbs and place them into am airtight bag, mark and date the bag. Most frozen herbs will last six months. The best herbs for freezing are parsley and chives.
Another method for freezing was mentioned above and that is to make a pesto or sauce out of your herbs, or simply chopping the herbs in a food processor with a little olive oil mixed in.
Then place the pureed mixture into ice cube trays for future use when either an herb or quick sauce is needed for your pasta or vegetables dishes. This is the best method for basal. Never freeze basil alone without processing first with oil, as basil frozen alone will turn black and become soggy.
One of my favorite uses for herbs is flavoring oil and vinegars that will last the season. Rosemary and Tarragon are my favorite in vinegars. Either of these herbs can be added to white or red wine vinegar, or balsamic vinegars. Basil is excellent to use in olive oil.
For uses of common culinary herbs please visit my former article on individual herbs written in April, 2011 at https://ctwatchdog.com/2011/04/14/cteastwell-herb-garden-primer-101
For herb availability please call your local nursery or herb farm in advance as many have already closed for the season. A few of the Connecticut herb farms are listed in the above link. The Herbery can be viewed at www.theherberyonline.com. Gilberties can be viewed at www.gilbertiesherbs.com. Martha’s Herbary can be viewed at www.marthasherbary.com.
For a list of several farm stands and farm stores located in Connecticut and open year round please visit http://www.ct.gov/doag/cwp/view.asp?a=3260&q=418062
Kathy LaBella is a registered dietitian, certified personal trainer, and owner of Peak Performance, LLC. She is available for individual nutrition and fitness counseling. She can be reached at 860-767-1535, her website is www.peakperformancerd.com, or email kathy@peakperformancerd.com and you can find her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Essex-CT/Kathy-LaBella-RD-CD-N-CPT/110761625657876?sk=wall
