Making Herbal Popsicles at Home - How Tos -day

I have not done a How-to in some time so when I stumbled across this great new kitchen accessory, I just had to share!
 

ZIPSICLES!

A zip seal popsicle bag!  These must have come from the mind of genius.  So innovative and so OBVIOUS!  I wish I had thought of it first.

I love pushup frozen pops.  The King of them -- Jel-Sert http://www.jelsert.com/ is headquartered in the town I first lived in when I came to Illinois, West Chicago.  They call the creation Fla-vor-ice.  We used to call them colors as no one was really sure what flavor they were. But since they are made with sugar and food coloring and almost only sugar we stopped buying them to avoid the calories when our lifestyle became more sedentary.

Now I have a solution to my craving for a quick frozen cool down after a hot day in the garden-- Zipzicle pouches!   http://www.zipzicles.com/order.html

Now my recipes for herbal infusions that are awesome frozen can be used to create these treats in a fun and easy way!  And the best part is these can be made with sugar substitutes as well as regular sugar.

And since I ordered my first batch of Zipzicles, I have been experimenting with recipes to make with them.

Here are the steps-- (two recipes are at the bottom.)

Lemon Verbena Sorbetsicles

2 1/2 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped lemon verbena
2 tablespoons lemon juice
 

Combine the water, sugar, and lemon verbena in a medium, heavy saucepan, and bring to a boil. Stir the pot until the sugar dissolves.

simmering the lemon verbena in the sugar water

Reduce the heat to medium-low. Allow the pot to simmer for 5 minutes.
 

You can see the green yellow color from the steeped leaves

Remove from the heat and allow the herb-syrup to steep while it cools. 

Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled. 

Strain.

Add the lemon juice.

Then pour into zipzicles 

and freeze until hard.  This recipe tastes like lemon ice heaven.  The fresh smell of lemon verbena is captured in the mixture.  And you will love it as a no sugar version too!

Lemon Verbena Sorbetsicles

2 1/2 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped lemon verbena
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine the water, sugar, and lemon verbena in a medium, heavy saucepan, and bring to a boil. Stir the pot until the sugar dissolves, and then reduce the heat to medium-low. Allow the pot to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the herb-syrup to steep while it cools. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled. Strain, add the lemon juice, then pour into zipzicles and freeze until hard.

Pineapple-Lemon Balm Sorbetsicles

This pale yellow and green-flecked frozen treat was adapted from a recipe in Herbs in the Kitchen by Carolyn Dille and Susan Belsinger (Interweave Press, 1992).  The original recipe made 1 ½ quarts, but for sorbetsicles you only need a couple of cups.

2 Tablespoons sugar

¼ cup boiling water

¼ of a ripe pineapple, about ½ pound (you could use 2/3 of a 10 ounce can of pineapple packed in water)

2 Tbls. packed lemon balm leaves

Dissolve the sugar in the boiling water and set aside to cool. Remove the rind from the pineapple and core it. Cut it into chunks and measure 1 to 1 ¼ cups of pineapple. Puree the pineapple with the balm leaves in a food processor, or in a blender. Stir the sugar syrup into the puree and blend well.  Pour the mixture into Zipzicles and freeze for 40 minutes to 1 hour, until very firm.

BigOven has this simple syrup recipe you can make with sugar substitute Splenda.  http://www.bigoven.com/recipe/164356/Sugar-free-Simple-Syrup  I suggest you check it out for all the detailed instructions and information.   

Sugar-free Simple Syrup 
1 cup Sucralose Sweetener; Splenda or similar brand 
1 cup water, boiling 
 

Dissolve Splenda in water and allow to cool. Strain through a coffee filter to remove sediment. Use wherever a recipe calls for simple syrup. 

To use this in the recipes above –

For Lemon Verbena Sorbetscicles, add ¾ cup chopped Lemon Verbena leaves to the sugar-free simple syrup before you have strained it and allow to cool to room temperature.  Then refrigerate for at least 2 hours.  Strain the syrup, add 1 Tbls lemon juice and freeze in your zipzicles. 

For Pineapple-Lemon Balm Sorbetsicles add the Splenda equivalent of 2 Tbls to ¼ cup of boiling water and make sure the canned pineapple is packed in water, not syrup.  This one was not as good to the hubby’s blood sugar as the Lemon Verbena one was.

Rhubarb Punch - Weekend Recipe

Last week the Lemon Verbena Lady shared a recipe using her (and my) favorite herb - Lemon Verbena.  That got me to thinking of ways to use lemon verbena and since I have two bigs bags of cut up rhubarb in the freezer from this spring, this is what I came up with.

Rhubarb Punch

A truly unique taste that you'll love.  The lush lemon flavor of the Lemon Verbena accents the tart rhubarb perfectly.

2 pounds rhubarb, chopped

4 cups water

2 Tbls fresh Lemon Verbena, chopped

3/4 cup sugar

Juice from 1 orange

Juice from 1 lemon

3/4 cup soda water

In saucepan, bring rhubarb, herbs, and 4 cups water to a boil; reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until rhubarb is softened. In cheesecloth lined sieve set over bowl, strain rhubarb for at least 2 hours or overnight. Discard pulp. Stir sugar and orange and lemon juices into rhubarb juice. Transfer to pitcher and refrigerate. Just before serving, add soda water.

Lemon Sorbet in an Ice Cream Freezer

The ice cream freezer was patented on this day (May 30th) in 1848. Now at the time they were hand crank and required elbow crease as well as large amounts of chipped ice, but they did create a great frozen treat.

When my husband was Farm manager and later Site manager for Kline Creek Farm in Winfield, Illinois, every summer we would have an Ice Cream Social where we would hand crank hundreds of gallons of ice cream to serve to visitors. 

courtesy of 1890 farmer on flickr.com

The volunteers used ice blocks from the previous winter's ice cutting on the lake at the farm. They crushed it and mixed it with rock salt, then packed it around the one-gallon metal containers that held the ingredients. The salt melted the ice while a crank turned the container. As ice melted, more was added until the eggs, cream, sugar and flavoring became ice cream.  It took about one and a half hours to make a gallon of ice cream this way.

When you make icce cream with herbs you generally do soe with a simple syrup rather than eggs and cream, which results in a Sorbet rather than an ice cream.  However, you can still freeze it and enjoy on a hot day using your ice cream freezer.  So selebrate the patenting of the Ice Cream Freezer with this great recipe using my favorite herb! 

Lemon Verbena Sorbet

2 1/2 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped lemon verbena
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine the water, sugar, and lemon verbena in a medium, heavy saucepan, and bring to a boil. Stir the pot until the sugar dissolves, and then reduce the heat to medium-low. Allow the pot to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the herb-syrup to steep while it cools. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled. Strain, add the lemon juice, and process in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer the sorbet to an airtight container and let firm in the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving.

Skewered Sesame Shrimp - Weekend recipe

Skewered shrimp are easy to turn during cooking; you can also sauté shrimp on their own. These shrimp are perfect with buttered rice or noodles and sautéed greens. Regular or sugar snap peas would also be a good choice.

Skewered Sesame Shrimp

Serves4

24 large shrimp (about 11/4 pounds), peeled and deveined

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons wine vinegar

1/4 cup sesame seeds

2 tsp. dried lemon thyme or lemon verbena

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Thread three shrimp onto each of eight 6-inch bamboo skewers. Combine soy sauce and vinegar in a shallow dish, and put sesame seeds on a plate. Dip each skewer of shrimp into the soy-vinegar mixture, and then dip both sides in the sesame seeds.  In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add skewered shrimp, and cook until shrimp are opaque, about 3 minutes on each side. Transfer skewers to a plate. Pour the remaining soy-vinegar mixture into the hot pan, and cook, stirring, until slightly thickened, about 15 seconds. Drizzle sauce over shrimp, and serve warm or at room temperature.

Exotic Herbs in the Garden

Happy Easter!  I am getting out the garden plans and making my plant lists while I have sometime off visiting the family.  As a result I started thinking about what I wanted and what I could get that was new.  that was when I remembered that a lecture attendee asked me at a recent program to list three herbs that most people have not tried in the garden which I would recommend growing.

I came up with this list: Lemon Verbena, Pineapple Sage and Garlic Chives.

Lemon verbena is my favorite herbs so I always recommend it, but pineapple sage is god for flower gardeners as well as herb enthusiasts.  And Garlic chives allows those who fear the strong flavor of garlic to enjoy its more gentle tastes.

Lemon Verbena (Aloysia triphylla)

Perhaps no other herb can appease the true lemon lover like lemon verbena can This deciduous woody shrub to bushy, tender perennial grows 3 to 5 feet in cooler climates; 10 to 15 feet tall in frost- free regions of the South.

Growing conditions: Prefers rich and moderately moist, well-drained soil in full sun. The roots can be hardy down to 20 degrees if heavily mulched and grown in a protected area. Zone 8, so here in Illinois you need to  treat it as an annual or plant it in a container.

Culinary tips: Use fresh or dried leaves in teas and beverages; salads and fruit dishes; salad dressings and marinades; and baked goods and desserts. Lemon verbena brightens the flavor of fish and chicken

 

Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans)

This herbaceous subshrub grows from 3 to 5 feet tall and features brilliant green, slightly hairy pineapple scented leaves and red, trumpet-shaped flower spikes from summer until frost.

Growing conditions: Plants thrive in full sun and rich, well-drained soil, but appreciate some shade in hot summer areas. Pineapple sage prefers more moisture and nitrogen than most other species of sage. Zone 9, but can be grown a zone or two lower if you cut back the plant in late full and cover the soil with a thick layer of winter mulch. Or you can grow it like I do in a pot and bring it in each winter along with my Lemon Verbena.

Culinary tips: Use fresh or dried leaves with foods that are enhanced by the light tropical flavor of pineapple, such as fruit salads, jams and jellies-or to heighten the flavor of cheeses and desserts.

 

Garlic Chives (Alliun tuberosum)

This flat leafed member of the onion family blooms with white flowers in the fall. This hardy perennial plant will grow in expanding clumps or sprout from seed.

Growing Conditions: Can sprout in almost any soil from rocky to humus and prefers full sun. In colder climates, Zone 5 and above, the leaves will die back in winter and regrow in the spring.

Culinary Tips: Both the leaves and the flowers can be eaten.  Toss the flowers into salads or use them to craft and herbal vinegar.  Chop the leaves into stir-fry, over potatoes, or whisk into salad dressings.

So enjoy a few exotics in your garden this year and see what joy you can turn up!

Making A New Year's Drink with Lemon Verbena

I know it seems like I am rushing the season, but I just brought my Lemon verbena plants inside for the winter and they are a bit too large for the house so I am going to have to trim them back.  Normally I just dry the leaves I remove, but this year I decided to try something different.  I made lemon verbena-infused vodka.

That was after I stumbled across this recipe for a martini made with the vodka.  I thought if you wanted to plan ahead, you could make a bit of the vodka and then you would could make this wonderful Lemon Drop to welcome in the New Year.

It is very simple to make Lemon Verbena Infused Vodka.  All you need is:

5 fresh lemon verbena sprigs

2 cups vodka

Wash the sprigs and pat dry.  Place them in a jar with the vodka and let steep for 12-24 hours.  Strain.  I infuesed mine for a week rather than 24 hours, but you get the idea.

Lemon Verbena Drop with Thyme

serves 2

2 cups sugar for the sugar garnish

3 tablespoons sugar for syrup

1/3 cup water

8 sprigs fresh thyme

¼ cup plain vodka

¼ cup lemon verbena-infused vodka

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

Ice cubes

To make the optional sugar garnish, have ready a bowl of ice water. Lightly oil a baking sheet. In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stir the 2 cups sugar with a wooden spoon until the sugar melts and turns a golden caramel color.  Takes about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and plunge the bottom of the pan into the ice water for exactly 10 seconds to halt the cooking. Immediately spoon the hot caramel out onto the prepared baking sheet, creating small strands. Let cool until hard, and then crack into tiny shards. Set aside.

To make a sugar syrup, in a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the water to a simmer. Add the 3 tablespoons sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Chill 2 martini glasses. In a tall cocktail shaker, combine the thyme sprigs with the sugar syrup. Using a muddler or the handle of a wooden spoon, lightly crush and pound the thyme for 1 minute. Add the vodka, the infused vodka, and the lemon juice. Fill the shaker half full with ice, cover with the lid, and shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Strain into the chilled glasses. Balance a few sugar shards on each rim. (The remaining shards can be stored, if using, in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days). Serve at once.