Garlic & Mint *Family* Recipes

[Guest guest]

At 05:48 PM 2/22/2004 -0000, you wrote:

>Anya, I'd be interested in some recipes for using mints. I use fresh

>garlic in a lot of my cooking.

 

Hi Pat

This post is for you, and the others who emailed me privately asking for

recipes. Notice I added *Family* to the subject. When I said mint family in

my previous post, I was referring to all of the wonderful,

essential-oil-rich goodies in the Labiateae/Lamiaceae family:

thyme,oregano, basil, lemon balm, rosemary, sage, savory, mint -- there

are about 200 Genera in this family, and most are wonderfully aromatic.

Herbalism and aromatherapy would be sadly lacking if we didn't have them.

 

It would be quite a feat for me to list all my recipes for them-- can't I

just encourage you to experiment? :-) Make lemon balm pesto, chop fresh

rosemary over potatoes (mint, too), use oregano and thyme in a marinade,

etc., etc. I don't follow any rules, I just use what's in season, or in my

garden, and slip it into everything I cook!

 

Now, the raw garlic recipes are a little trickier. Most folks in America

don't have a family heritage of using raw garlic. I use recipes from other

countries, and use them on almost a daily basis. Here are some of my

favorites:

 

Fresh Mexican Salsa

1 large tomato, chopped

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

juice of one fresh lime

small handful of fresh cilantro, chopped

sea salt to taste

 

Vietnamese Dipping Sauce

2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced

2-3 Serrano hot peppers, finely minced

2 T brown sugar

juice of two limes

dash of fish sauce (I like the 3 Crab brand)

dash of water

 

Mediterranean Yoghurt Sauce

Cup yoghurt

2-3 cloves minced garlic

dash sea salt

(chopped cilantro or grated cucumber optional)

if you use the cucumber, let it drain in a sieve for a while

 

Chinese Dipping Sauce

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

small piece of fresh ginger, minced

dash white vinegar

1/4-1/2 C soy sauce

 

Fresh Tomato and Garlic Sauce

1 lb or so fresh, tasty tomatoes, pureed in blender with

4-5 cloves of garlic

dash of sea salt

 

Just toss with freshly cooked spaghetti.

 

That's all I can think of right now

Yes, I do sometimes use Breath Assure after one of these meals :-)

 

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