Fresh herbs

I’ve been reaching for fresh cilantro, parsley, and mint more frequently this winter.

Up until a few years ago I really wasn’t crazy for eating fresh herbs, especailly dill, but now I’ve embraced them. Particularly the leafy greens, like parsley, cilantro, and mint. And so, especially during the winter months, I’m finding additional ways to use up a bunch from the grocery store.

During the summer I can go out to the yard and pick what I need from the garden. But beyond our growing season here in southern Ontario, I purchase elastic-bundled handfuls of fresh parsley and cilantro at the supermarket. I hate to see it go to waste in the fridge after it’s intened purpose leaves me with half of what I’d bought just laying in the vegetable drawer.

And so, a few sprigs are mixed in with the lettuce greens when I assemble our dinner salads; small handfuls are added to bowls of soup and especially to the pot when I’m making broth; chopped, they’re sprinkled over vegetables (before and after they’re roasted), or stirred into boiled potatotes or steamed peas: the purchased herbs are being used up.

Now I’m using fresh herbs everywhere.

Like, here, topping my fried egg sandwich: I added plenty of fresh parsley and cilantro, along with my more routine arugula. Plus some briny, spicy liquid from a container of kimchi I had in the fridge, drizzled over top for zing. These extra greens really transformed the sandwich from an egg on bread, to a proper sandwich.

Same goes for adding sliced fresh figs and a a few sprigs of fresh herbs to a rustic cheese sandwich.

At this rate, by the time summer gets here, I’ll need to plant more herbs than usual.

But not dill; I haven’t embraced that herb yet.