Kitchen Garden Guides

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Mint.

I picked a salad; some from the community garden, some from my own….. leaves of every shape, colour and culture. So what? I do this every few days. But today I had mint at last. Mint dies down here in winter and it is only this week that the shoots have been long enough to start picking again. Going all winter without mint is sad but not something I usually notice that much, until it returns!

Mint is so versatile and so distinctive. Mint goes with everything from lamb to chocolate. It can be eaten or drunk. If I don’t have any coriander, I use mint. If something needs a lift, mint will do it. Everyone seems to like it and there is a mint or two for every climate and every culture. Its even in toothpaste!

The first mint to wake up from winter here this year is spearmint….. I crushed a leaf and smelled it….. instant recognition….. Wriggleys Spearmint Chewing Gum from my childhood  ….in those little silver wrappers….. do they make that any more??

Mint. Probably my favourite herb.

2 comments:

veggiegobbler said...

Yep I love mint too. I love it chopped finely with chilli and lemon juice and oil as a salad dressing. Mine's just starting to come back too.

Kirsty @ Bowerbird Blue said...

Plenty of mint here but unfortunately my partner is not a huge fan so it goes mostly unused.