Parsley: The All-Purpose Herb
By Brenda Hyde
Parsley is a wonderful all purpose herb! The great thing
about it, is that it's so widely available in markets that
even if you don't grow it you can find it easily. I put fresh
parsley in every dip and spread I make, whether it's in the
recipe or not!
Add it to soups and sauces, egg dishes,
stuffings, bread dough, stews, fish dishes...I could go on
and on. Puree parsley leaves wiht a small amount of olive
oil and freeze in small plastic containers, or ice cubes trays
(remove these when frozen and place in bags). You can
also freeze the parsley leaves on trays and place them in
bags when frozen-simply remove, mince and add to the
dishes without thawing!
Do make sure you wash parsley well in very cold water
to remove any soil that's hiding amoung the leaves.
Use this mixture to stuff chickens before roasting:
1 cup chopped parsley, 1 tablespoon lemon zest or
minced lemon balm and 3 cloves of minced garlic.
Below is another chicken recipe as well as a dressing.
Parsley is an all purpose herb and as you become accustomed
to it you'll find many new uses for it.
Lemon Herb Chicken
Ingredients:
3-4 pounds chicken breast with skin
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 tablespoon chopped parsley, thyme and chives
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
8 thin slices of lemon, with peel
Mix the herbs, butter, garlic and half of the salt and pepper.
Loosen the skin of the chicken-do not remove-and rub the
herbed butter under the skin-dividing between the chicken
pieces. Insert 1 or 2 lemon slices under the skin as well.
Smooth the skin back, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Bake at 4 degrees for 40 minutes or until juices run clear.
You may also broil or grill for 10 minutes to crisp the skin
after the main baking.
Parlsey Chive Dressing
Ingredients:
2 tsp. wine or herb vinegar
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot or green onion
1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, minced
Combine the ingredients with a whisk and serve with
mixed greens and tomatoes.
You'll find parsley seeds at The Garden Guides Seed Shop. They carry organic moss curled, green river parsley, Italian flat
and the cress-like Mitsuba Japanese parsley.
About the author:
Brenda Hyde is an avid gardener, freelance writer and
editor living in the Midwest with her husband and three
children.
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