1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Coarse salt and ground pepper
¼ small red onion, very thinly sliced
2 ripe peaches, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cinnamon basil leaves
In a small bowl of ice water soak onion for 10 minutes; drain, blot dry and return to bowl. Add peaches, honey, lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand 15 minutes. Toss with cinnamon basil.
Linda
CAKE
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons (packed) minced cinnamon basil or sweet basil leaves
1 ¼ cups vegetable oil, preferably canola oil
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 ½ cups unpeeled, coarsely chopped cooking apples, such as Granny Smiths
GLAZE
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 10-inch removable-bottom tube pan.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk in basil leaves until thoroughly dispersed in the flour; set aside. In a large bowl, beat together oil and sugar on low speed. On medium speed, add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and increase speed to high; beat for 30 seconds. On low speed, add flour mixture and beat just until blended. Mixture is very dense.
3. Fold in apples with a spatula; spread batter in prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
4. Just before cake is done, make glaze: Over medium heat, melt the butter in a small saucepan and whisk in both sugars, cream, and vanilla. Boil glaze for 1 minute.
5. When the cake comes out of the oven, immediately pour the hot glaze over. Let cake cool completely on a rack before removing from pan. To remove from pan, run a knife around the edge to release it, then run a thin knife between cake and pan bottom; invert to release and invert again to place on platter, so glaze side is up.
Yield: 12 to 16 servings
This recipe is from “Desserts from an Herb Garden” by Sharon Kebschull Barrett.
Linda
Cinnamon basil is a cultivar of Ocimum basilicum (sweet basil). It contains cinnamate, the same chemical that gives cinnamon its flavor, and has the strongest scent of cinnamon.
Cinnamon basil has reddish stems, lavender spiked flowers and small- to medium-sized serrated green leaves. The leaves have a cinnamon-like taste and odor. It can grow up to 3 feet tall and 3 feet wide. Growing it in the garden may deter other pests that don’t like the smell of it.
If you’ve never grown or cooked with cinnamon basil, the following recipes might change your mind. Intensely fragrant, it can be used for baking, sauces, teas and as a “finisher” for many dishes.
Go ahead and give it a try. The Cinnamon Basil Chicken recipe is so divinely aromatic while cooking you might feel as though you’ve been transported to some foreign land – maybe the streets of Morocco or the Spice Markets of Istanbul. You might encounter flavors you’ve never experienced before. Toss it in your sliced summer peaches and red onion salad with honey lemon vinaigrette for a real burst of seasonal flavor. And, don’t forget to satisfy your sweet tooth with the wonderfully moist Apple-Basil Cake. Whether sweet or savory, this delightful herb gets high marks for satisfying the senses!
Linda
¾ cup unsalted butter
½ cup confectioner’s sugar
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons fresh lime zest
1. In a medium bowl and using an electric mixer at medium speed, cream the butter and confectioner’s sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract and salt.
2. In a small bowl, toss together the flour, basil, and lime zest. With the mixer at low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and mix until the dough just comes together and forms a ball. Remove the dough from the bowl, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/8-inch thickness, and using a 2-inch round fluted cutter, cut cookies. Place on prepared baking sheet, and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until edges begin to brown. Cool on wire racks before serving.
Yield: 24 cookies
Recipe from Victoria Bliss Magazine, March/April 2009
Linda
1 cup tightly packed basil leaves
3 TBS. sugar
In a large container mash the basil and sugar with the back of a wooden spoon until basil is broken.
Add: 3 cups fresh orange juice
3 TBS. fresh lime juice
5 cups water
Stir until sugar is dissolved. Serve over ice. Makes approx. 8 cups.
Paula
½ medium size watermelon, cubed
3 medium peaches, cubed
2 medium size heirloom tomatoes (green variety) cubed
½ red onion, thinly sliced
1-2 stalk’s worth of basil leaves
1-2 stalk’s worth of mint leaves
Juice of one lime
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
¼ cup good quality olive oil
1. Toss together the watermelon, peaches, tomato, and onion in a large bowl. Chiffonade the basil and mint and add to the fruit mixture.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients and toss with the watermelon mixture. Chill or serve at room temperature.
Makes 6 to 8 servings. Can easily be doubled or tripled.
Linda
½ (17.3-ounce) package frozen puff pastry, thawed
3 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup shaved Parmesan cheese
Garnish: fresh basil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 13×10-inch rectangle, trimming as necessary.
Cut rectangle into 4 parts horizontally and 3 parts vertically, creating 12 (3 ½ x 3 ¼-inch) rectangles.
Using a sharp knife, score 4 lines to create a ¼-inch border all the way around each rectangle. Transfer to prepared baking sheet.
Spread about 1½ teaspoons pesto inside the border of each rectangle. Place tomato slices in a single layer on pesto. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until light golden color; remove from oven, and cool slightly.
Drizzle each rectangle with olive oil. Place cheese shavings on tarts, and garnish with fresh basil. Serve immediately.
Yield: 1 dozen tarts
Classic Pesto
3 large cloves garlic
3 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
½ cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
½ cup coarsely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Place the basil leaves in a food processor and pulse until half-way chopped. Add the pine nuts and garlic. Continue pulsing. Add the cheese, salt and pepper. Through the pouring spout, with the processor on , drizzle the olive oil into the basil mixture. Blend just until incorporated but not completely smooth. A little texture is best.
Yield: About 3 cups
Linda
½ medium red onion, finely diced
¼ cup white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ears sweet corn, shucked
8 ounces orzo pasta
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced into ¼-inch pieces
1 ½ cups torn leaves of sweet basil or lemon basil
Stir the red onion, vinegar, lime juice, salt and pepper together in a large mixing bowl. Let it sit while you continue with the recipe, allowing the acidic ingredients to mellow the raw bite of the onion.
Hold the ears of corn upright on a large cutting board and cut off the kernels, being careful not to cut so deep you shave the cob. They should give you about 5 cups of kernels.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the orzo and when it is just tender, after about 8 minutes, add the corn kernels to the pot. Cook until the water boils again, then drain in a colander, and rinse with cold water.
Stir the olive oil in to the bowl with the dressed onion. Toss in the pasta and corn, red bell pepper, and basil until evenly combined. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.
Yield: 10 servings
Recipe from The Herbal Kitchen by Jerry Traunfeld
Linda
2 sticks softened unsalted butter
2 gloves of garlic, peeled
1 cup packed basil leaves
1 TBS. fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 TBS. grated parmesan cheese
¼ tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. crushed red pepper (opt.)
Place cleaned basil leaves, parmesan cheese and garlic in a small food processor and process till finely chopped.
Add to butter. Then add lemon juice, salt and crushed red pepper. Mix well. Place in any container you wish and refrigerate. Butter will last in the refrigerator 2-3 weeks. Can be frozen for up to 3 months and just slice off chunks as needed.
Paula
One of the stars of summer surely is the well-loved herb – basil. But did you know how many ways this fragrant little plant could be incorporated into cooking, healing and pleasure?
Starting in May then continuing on until October the possibilities for allowing Basil to grace both table, home, and garden are endless. Here are some of our favorites:
Basil Lunch Medley
Tomato Tarts with Basil Pesto
Corn, Orzo, and Basil Salad
Peach, Watermelon and Tomato Salad With Mint and Basil
Italian Bread with Basil Butter
Basil Lime Shortbread
Citrus Basil Punch
Linda
Dallas Garden Buzz would like to know if you would like some of these recipes!
DALLAS GARDEN BUZZ 