ABOUT BASIL

Basil is a warm-weather, fragrant herb that tastes great in Italian dishes and let’s not forget homemade pesto! Plant seeds or transplants after all danger of frost has passed and soil is warm, and it will yield an abundant harvest within weeks. Keep harvesting the leaves to keep the plant going strong.

“BETTER” title=”Basil”]The most common type of basil is sweet basil; other types include purple basil (less sweet than common basil), lemon basil (lemon flavor), and Thai basil (licorice flavor).

Basil is easy to grow, but it only grows outdoors in the summer—and only once the soil has warmed up nicely—so plan accordingly.

If you’re planning on making pesto, grow several plants. For other uses, one or two basil plants yields plenty.

Recommended Varieties

• Cinnamon basil, to add a hint of cinnamon to a dish
• Purple basil, to add some nice color to your garden (when steeped in white vinegar, it creates a beautiful color)
• Thai basil, to add a sweet licorice flavor to a dish.

Wit & Wisdom

• Basil has a lovely fragrance. Pick from the stems and put in water for a few days as you would with cut flowers!
• For other greens to use in your cuisine, see our Leafy Greens: Health Benefits page.

Where salt is good, so is basil.
–Italian saying

Health Benefits

Basil is a very good source of magnesium and Vitamin K. Magnesium promotes cardiovascular health by improving blood flow, and Vitamin K help the blood clots.

Storing & Cooking Information

Handling:  Wash basil and remove leaves from stem.  Pile the basil leaves on top of each other. Next, roll them all together and start slicing from the end.

Storing: Basil should be used quickly.  Do not wash prior to putting in fridge.  To avoid discoloration, the optimum storage temperature is between 40 and 45 F.  The best option is to put basil stems in glass of water on a countertop and use within a few days.

Freezing:  Pinch off all the basil leaves, discard the stems, and wash the leaves very well in a salad spinner. Spin them as dry as you possibly can. If you don’t have a salad spinner, just wash your basil leaves in the sink and dry them well with paper towels. Put a few of handfuls of basil into the food processor, using the steel blade. The food processor bowl should be full, but not tightly packed. Pulse the food processor with one hand and drizzle olive oil into the feed tube with the other hand, just pulsing until the basil is coarsely chopped. You should make sure that all the basil is coated with oil too, which keeps it from going dark in the freezer. Use about 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil for each batch in the food processor when making coarsely chopped basil like this to use for pasta sauce, soup, or stew during the winter. Freeze in small Ziplocs or ice cube trays to thaw small amounts to use in recipes.[/agro_product_features_item][/agro_product_features_container][/vc_column][/vc_row]