Herbs Herbs - Drying

Hi guys...

Here is my last little ditty on herbs, drying herbs is the easiest method of perserving your herb harvest.  I like to use this method later in the summer and pull these babies out in winter so I can use  my Thyme in baked chicken and soups, basil in my italian dishes and oregano just to sprinkle on my sandwiches and hoagies for extra flavor.  And wow do these add flavor.  So much more vibrant than store bought, TRY IT and you'll see!!  : )

There are just a few things to remember for dyring herbs:

Harvesting...

• Harvest before the plant blooms.
• Harvest mid-morning and allow the dew to dry.  Don't harvest your herbs in the afternoon sun during wilt.

Preparation...

• Cut healthy stems
• Remove any yellow or dead leaves
• Shake the cuttings to get rid of hitchhikers, small spiders and etc, they are always there!!
• Gently wash the cuttings and lay out on a paper towel to dry
• Remove the lower leaves to expose around 1" of branch
• Bundle together several branches and band together with a rubber band or a twist tie
• put the branches in a paper bag with the bundled end sticking out
• rubber band the paper bag to the branches
• hang in a cool, dry area - attic possibly.

Store your Herbs for Drying...

• After a few weeks check on the herbs if
•  they are not dry leave them for another week or so.
• Remove the bunch from the bag.
• Strip the herbs from the stems
• Store in small air tight containers such as mason jars or good quality zip lock baggies.

TIPS: 
*Label and date your herbs
**Do not chop your herbs, store whole dried herb leaves, they will retain much more of their flavor.
***To reinvigorate herbs as I use them, I always put a small amount of olive oil in a small frying pan and add my dried herbs to that and put it over heat for a minute.  You can chop of simply mush them between your fingers to release their oils.  After they've been heated a minute in the oil, I add them to my soup/sauce or stock recipes!!! 
****I like to use dried oregano on my sandwiches, for this I simply mush and roll a pinch of oregano between my fingers onto the sandwich.  I suppose you could heat it and release, but I like the thought of the heat of my fingers warming the herb and my fingers crushing them into small flakes.  I sprinkle it like salt on my ham/turkey or italian sandwiches and subs (salads too!!).