What do you do with Basil besides make Pesto?

I'm crazy about homemade Pesto but what else do you use Basil for?

I use basil in spaghetti sauce, a pasta recipe called LINGUINE WITH TUNA, WALNUTS, AND HERBS. It's great used in Shrimp Scampi, also. Those are just a couple of recipes right off the top of my head. I'm sure I could come up with more. I love it and use it a lot!

I put it into all that roasted tomato sauce I made last summer (BlueKat76's recipe, I think it's posted in the tomato forum)... I also mince basil, oregano, and thyme in the proportions called for in my DH's spaghetti sauce recipe, add garlic etc and just enough olive oil to hold it together in a pesto-like paste, then freeze for winter use just as I do pesto (ice cube trays are great for this).

I also like it added to green summer salads, or in sandwiches (especially with some of that roasted pepper-eggplant spread from Trader Joe's).

Oh isn't that roasted tomato sauce to *die* for? :)

Great tips!
When using fresh in sauces and such how much do you use?

Roasted pepper-eggplant spread??? YUM! Who is Trader Joes??

http://www.traderjoes.com/ Gormet food items, great place for nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, olive oil... and better yet, the prices are low!

Bummer!
No store in my area.
What is the brand name of the Roasted pepper-eggplant spread?
Maybe I can find it in astore in my area.

I use basil in stews and soups

Sorry, rose.... It's the Trader Joe label.

K, thanks critter ;-)

brushetta (sp?)

Cottage_Rose, there will be a Trader Joe's in your area this summer I think. Or maybe fall. My cousins live in GR, and they have been driving to Ann Arbor for the occasional TJ's trip. The last time they were in this area, they complained bitterly about having to drive so far, and the manager told them all about the new store that's set to go up in Grand Rapids :-)

We love our TJ's....... best soups ever. And pitas. And green beans. And peas. And fruit & nut mixes. And so on and so forth :-)

Oh oh not a single one listed in GA. No fair!

calypsa
Woo-hooo! Thanks for the heads up! :))
I haven't heard anything about it yet.
Does your cousin know where abouts its going to be in GR and when its opening?!?

I love to make an appetizer by layering basil leaves with thin slices of tomato and fresh mozarella. You drizzle a balsamic vinaigrette and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper. It's a wonderful, simple, elegant appetizer.

Another idea is to make pizza margarita by layering mozarella, tomatoes, and fresh basil on thinly rolled out pizza dough.

mmmmm... yum! I can't wait until my basil gets tall enough to start using!

Portia

I put it in everything according to my ex, my fave last year was to mix chopped basil leaves in butter with a pinch of minced garlic and a dash of cayenne pepper and brush over grilled corn on the cob. Mmm..
I put a small amount in scrambled eggs, also good is what I call "mediterranean eggs": basically eggs over easy cooked in a bit of olive oil with fresh ground black pepper, a dash of garlic powder and about a 1/8 tsp finely shredded basil..serve on toast with the yolk spread on the bread like butter..

YUMMY!!! :p

this thread is making me sooooohungry!
Debbie

Hi all,
When we have guests, I take jumbo shrimp, wrap a large basil leaf around it and then wrap a strip of proscuitto around that and skewer them. Grill and dip into a mustard sauce.
Easy and it really makes me look good. :-)

LoraB

Jungle Salad is a great way to put your fresh basil and other herbs to use:
Asian Noodles
Asian Peanut Sauce w/lime juice to taste
Fresh Basil
Fresh Mint
Fresh Cilantro
Avocado chunked
Tomatoes chunked
Mangos chunked
Green onions chopped
Grilled beef tenderloin or chicken
salt n pepper

I make my own pasta. I like to chop it up finely and add it my fettuccinni noodles, and then lay a leaf on top when served.

lewissh3 That Jungle Salad sounds AWESOME! drool!
What do you do with the peanut sauce?
Use it as the dressing or marinade for the meat?

Thanks everybody for the tips and recipes! :)



This message was edited Apr 26, 2006 8:15 AM

The peanut sauce and lime juice is the dressing to be mixed into the salad. You can also top with chopped peanuts depending on how much you like em! It is one of our favorites, usually a big hit at dinner parties. The key is fresh ingredients so your herbs would be perfect. Glad to be of help! I'm also from MI originally so I'm impressed you actually have herbs this early! I'm apparently LATE under TX standards getting my garden in....oh well! :)

Shannon

Thanks for the details Shannon.
We don't have herbs yet.
Too cold for much to be growing yet expect Spring flowers.
I made the Jungle Salad tonight but with a whole broasted chicken from the deli.
Didn't have time to grill tonight but we're big on grilling so will try it that way too.
I bought some fresh mint and basil from the store too.
Our grocer has alot of fresh herbs. The mint isn't as nice as my Jim Westerfield mints but it was ok.
Lucky me...avacados and mangos were $1. each.
LOVED the salad! :)

buy hard rolls from the Publix
cut in half and toast under the broiler a little
drizzle a little olive oil on them
lay down a big basil leaf
lay down a big fat slice of homegrown tomato
salt and pepper to taste
lay down a big fat slice of mozzarella
put back under broiler until cheese melts a little and browns a little

summer perfection!

Amen! LOL

try the easy tomatoe/garlic basil marinara sauce.
3 garlic cloves pressed.
1 tablespoon olive oil
Tomatoe sauce
Press the garlic into the pan and saute for a couple of minutes over medium heat. Add some tomatoe sauce (home made is good but canned is ok too). Warm the sauce until bubbly. Add about 10-15 chopped fine leaves of basil after its almost cooked. Don't cook the basil too long or else the essential oils will evaporate.

I've been told that adding basil to a recipe enhances the flavor. If you like to eat food that is so hot it causes steam to come out of your ears, add some basil, and it will enhance the hot spices, making that food even hotter! We use basil in everything. I think my husband is a basil-holic. Interestingly enough, we have never made pesto. He makes awesome cheesesteaks - if we are out of basil, he may as well skip the steaks, because the basil is an essential ingredient!

I make tea out of almost everything in the herb garden. Pyrex quart measuring cup. A handful of basil leaves...especially the thai ones....2-3 cups water...3 mins in the microwave...strain into cup....a shot of lemon or lime and/or honey....phytonutrients in my body. After a few uses...toss the limp leaves into the compost bin. I use dry in the winter in the same way...just run the infusion through a mesh strainer into my cup. Basil is a "perk up" infusion. HM

chiffonade (thin slices of rolled up basil leaves)
salt & fresh ground pepper
chunks of fresh tomatoes

Let them marinate together at room temp. Add mozzarella if you want but it's unnecessary.
that's it.

Make it for a side dish for supper but keep smelling the fragrance and eat it all yourself before DH gets home... LOL!

Yum! Everything listed above looks fantastic!

I like to make appetizers with toasted bread, fresh tomatoes, olive oil and fresh basil too, as some people have suggested, but I like to use goat cheese instead of moz (but make sure your guests like the goat cheese---some people hate it!).

The other thing I use lots and lots of basil for is making lots and lots of Thai food (with fresh Thai basil, which I think tastes quite different from Italian basil).

Typical ingredients in a stew-type Thai curry dish served over rice or rice noodles:

coconut milk
Thai curry paste
chicken/fish/lamb
fish sauce
brown sugar
bamboo shoots/fresh corn/sweet bell peppers/hot chili peppers
Thai basil
lime juice

More wonderful tips!

You know, sometimes simplicity just hits the spot. One of my fondest memories in the last couple of years is when I was visiting my daughter in Utah. I was up in the mountains with my daughter, her husband and my two grandsons. My daughter whipped out basil and beefsteak tomato sandwiches with mayo while we were resting next to a little creek. I will always remember those sandwiches. I have tried to duplicate them here in California but to no avail.

Thanks for reading an old man's babbling...LOL

Take care,

Chuck

Chuck
It was the love she put in them ... that's why you can't duplicate them! :)
~Elaine~

Chuck,
I just about live on tomato & mayo sandwiches once they start coming....basil will be a wonderful addition!
I think food somebody else prepares always tastes better. ;-)

I use fresh herbs in a tossed salad, basil included.

Oh yes, I've been known to lead a little parade out to the deck.... everyone with their salad bowl, adding various types of basil and edible flowers to their salad!

Tonight we had fresh tomatoes picked from the garden with salt and pepper and balsamic vinegar with fresh basil. Mmmmm!
~Elaine~

oh, *slurp!* That sounds just divine!

We've enjoyed a few snips off the little basil plants, but our biggest green tomato is ping pong ball sized! I planted out 30-some Italian Genovese Basil plants in a 14 ft. double row in front of the "pink" tomatoes (mostly potato leafed heirlooms), and they're looking good. So far, the bunnies prefer the clover, so we're in a state of truce LOL.

Well, that basil is a store bought but I've got some little babies from your seeds in the nursery. LOL I'm just daring the squirrels to go near that pot!