What better way to enjoy the harvest from your herb garden than to use them in cooking during times of the year when fresh herbs are not available. Using dried herbs purchased at the grocery store is fine, but drying and preserving your own is even better. It is somewhat like growing your own tomatoes. The ones you purchase throughout the year are just "so-so", but the tomatoes you grow yourself taste so much better!

There are a number of ways to have fresh-tasting herbs to use in cooking during the time you cannot harvest them from the garden. Probably the easiest way is drying. While this method works very well with some herbs, some lose much of their flavor during the drying process, and there are other ways to preserve their fresh flavor.

There are a few basic steps to take when drying herbs, and if you follow these procedures, you, too, will have top quality herbs to use. First, it is important to pick herbs when their essential oils are at their peak. Generally, this time is just prior to their starting to bloom. The exception is mints. For them, wait until just after they start to bloom but before going to seed. Next, the time of day to harvest is also important. Usually, in the morning, after the dew has dried off the leaves, is the best time. The leaves must be clean, so if they are dusty or have dirt splashed on the leaves from recent rains, lightly spray them with water from a hose the evening before you plan to harvest. Pick about a dozen stems of each herb, strip off several of the lower leaves, then take a rubber band and wrap around the end of the stripped stems and hang in a dark place to dry. It’s as simple as that.

The ideal drying temperature for herbs is around 95 degrees. A closet, attic, or any enclosed dark space is fine. You may want to use a fan to circulate air to help the drying process. Also, if the area is not dust free, then it is best to suspend the herbs in brown paper bags. Cut a couple of upside down V-shaped holes in each side of the bag to allow air circulation. This is especially good for herbs such as dill, caraway, cumin and coriander, where the seeds are harvested, because as the herb dries, most of the seeds drop to the bottom of the bag. Shake the bag to allow the rest of the seeds to drop.

Many people also use food dryers for drying their herbs. Spread a single layer of the herbs on the trays and set the thermostat so that temperature is around 95 degrees. They will dry quickly, so watch closely that they do not become too dry.

When the leaves of the herbs crush easily between the thumb and fingers, or the seeds drop, they are usually dry enough for use. Carefully strip leaves from the stems and place in containers with lids and store in a cool, dry place. Do not crush the leaves, but leave whole at this time. The reason for this is that you want to retain as much of their essential oils as possible. Crushing the leaves allows some of these essential oils to evaporate. After storing the leaves or seeds in containers, check them in a day or two to be sure they feel perfectly dry. If they still feel a little damp, then spread out and place in an oven set on low temperature or with only the pilot light burning for a short while, then return to storage jars.

As mentioned, some herbs lose their flavor when dried, or else retain more flavor when other methods of preserving are used. One of the simplest ways is freezing, and there are several ways this can be done. For basils, chives, garlic chives, chervil, cilantro and others, cut several stems, wrap in aluminum foil, closing both ends, and place in a freezer. When the herb is needed for cooking, simply unfold the foil from the top end, cut off amount of the herb needed, refold the end and return to the freezer. This works especially well for chives, since dried chives lose much

of their flavor, whereas using this method retains the flavor of fresh chives. Another favorite way to preserve herbs to retain full flavor, which is especially good for basil, dill and tarragon, for example, is to blend 2 cups of leaves of the herb with 1/2 cup of unflavored oil (corn, safflower, canola) in a blender. The mixture should be fairly thick, so if needed, add more leaves. Spoon into ice cube trays or baby food jars and freeze. When frozen, remove cubes from trays and put into freezer bags or put lids on baby food jars and store in freezer. When using, scrape with knife from cube or spoon from jar the amount needed in recipe.

Using the microwave oven is also a fast way to dry herbs, especially bay leaves, which retain most of their aroma and flavor when dried in this manner. Place a layer of leaves on a paper towel, add another paper towel on top, and microwave for one minute. Open door and allow steam to escape. Microwave in one minute intervals, each time allowing steam to escape. If paper towels seem damp, use fresh ones. Usually, after about three minutes of microwaving, the herb is dry enough for storing as described.