An herbal cooks gift basket Idea

Basket Ideas!A very nice herb basket would be all of the above placed in a basket with a kitchen towel or napkin in a herbal themed pattern, tied with a bow of natural raffia, and a victorian or country style gift card attached.

Herb Salt

Free running salt-no iodine
plastic or glass jar or shaker
one bunch herbs
a cookie sheet
your oven!
Spread a layer of the salt on the cookie sheet-about 1/8 of an inch thick.
Chop the herbs fine, and spread on top of the salt. You may use chives alone
for a great flavor. Or mix basil, chives, thyme, and oregano together for an
herbal mixture. Create from what you have on hand, or can buy at the store.
Place the cookie sheet in a 200 oven. Every 10 minutes check the herbs.You
want them to be dry enough to crumble but you don't want any browning to
occur.Just take a wooden spoon and gently move it around slightly. Depending
on your oven, this may take 30 minutes. When dry, remove the cookie sheet
and cool.You can use your hands or anything with a flat bottom to crush the
herbs.Put the herbs and salt into a very dry bowl and stir to mix. Transfer
to your glass jar or shakers.This is great on meat, or potatoes of any type!


Mild Herb Blend

2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried lemon rind

Mix ingredients together and place in plastic or glass jar.I save all my old
spice bottles for this purpose. Tie some raffia around the top and give with
the herbal salt! This mixture would be wonderful on vegetables with some
butter.

Stuffing Herb Blend

6 tablespoons sage
1 tablespoon thyme
3 tablespoons sweet marjoram
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley

Combine together by chopping or mincing. Keep up to one week in the
refrigerator. Use to season stuffing.

Dry Zesty Herb Blend

3 tablespoons dried basil
3 tablespoons dried marjoram
3 tablespoons dried thyme
3 tablespoons dried tarragon
1 tablespoon dried lemon peel
1 tablespoon whole oregano

Place all items in a small jar and seal. Shake until well blended. This is
great for adding to meat and vegetables.

Herb Mustard

1 cup dijon mustard
1/4 cup herbs; basil or chives, or both
1 1/2 tablespoon white wine
Container

Chop the herbs fine, mix with mustard and wine. Place in container. Will
last 3 months in the refrigerator.

Herbal Gifts from the Kitchen

Little Cooking Wreaths - can go right into soup pot, or hang in the
kitchen to be plucked from and used

Twist chive stalks into a 4-5" circle, forming a wreath base. Twist
in sprigs of thyme, parsley, oregano, marjoram and basil seed heads,
to fill out wreath. Add a short sprig of rosemary or sage. Let dry
thoroughly --wreath will shrink slightly. Thread 3 or 4 dried chiles
on sewing thread and tie around wreath top. If wreath is to hang,
cover thread by embellishing with a bow of kitchen twine or narrow
ribbon. Present your gift in a bow-tied plastic bag to preserve
flavor and minimize shattering.

Herb & Spice Blends - To present your gift, pack blends into small
labeled jars with lids, attached to an herbal cookbook.

For Beef: mix 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper, 1 tablespoon
red pepper flakes, 2 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder, 1 tablespoon
dried minced onion.

For Fish: mix 2 tablespoons dried dillweed, 2 tablespoons crumbled
bay leaves, 2 tablespoons freeze-dried chives.

For Fruit Pies, Spice Cakes & Cookies: mix 2 tablespoons cinnamon, 1
tablespoon ground nutmeg, 1 tablespoons ground mace, 1 tablespoon
ground allspice, 2 teaspoons ground cloves, 2 teaspoons ground
cardamon.

For Vegetables: mix 2 tablespoons dried oregano, 2 tablespoons dried
basil.

For Poultry: mix 2 tablespoons curry powder, 2 tablespoons paprika, 2
tablespoons dried lemon rind.

For Tomato Sauce: mix 2 tablespoons crumbled basil, 2 tablespoons
dried minced onions, 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, 1 tablespoon
crumbled dried oregano.

For Lamb: mix 1 1/2 tablespoons dried marjoram, 1 tablespoon crumbled
dried rosemary, 1 tablespoon white pepper, 2 tablespoons garlic
powder.

Good Bread Herbs include your favorite white or wheat bread recipe
with this blend presented in a decorated muslin bag.

Blend together 2 tablespoons dried crumbled sage, 1 tablespoon dried
rosemary, 1 tablespoon dill seed, 4 teaspoons caraway seed. On gift
tag: Will flavor 2 average loaves.

Citrus Spice Simmering Potpourri

Layer following ingredients in a gallon jar and add oils to
corresponding ingredients. Shake well and age 1 day before using:
Directions for Use on gift tag: Add 1/2 cup mixture to a small
saucepan filled with 3 cups of water and bring to boil. Reduce heat,
simmer for 15-20 minutes. Mixture may be reused several times, after
adding water to it.

1 cup 1" cinnamon sticks 1 cup whole allspice
1 cup star anise 1 cup coriander seed
2 cups dried orange peel 1/2 cup cloves
1/2 cup crushed nutmeg 10 drops cinnamon oil
10 drops allspice oil 20 drops sweet orange oil

Lemon-y Foot soak a great treat at day's end or for pampering someone
special! Present gift with instructions for use on gift tag, tied
onto a pretty jar or a plastic bag tied with a simple bow...

Crush and place in a jar, or tie in a bouquet and place in plastic
bag, for presentation: 5 sprigs of fresh lemon balm or10 sprigs
dried lemon balm. (Rosemary may be substituted. )

Recommended Instruction Tag to read: Bring 8 cups water to boil,
combine with contents in large pan or bowl, and let steep until
water is warm and comfortable. Soak feet 10-20 minutes.