7 ev he ery ma rbs da y sim de ple

with compliments and best wishes from Mad About Herbs hello@madaboutherbs.org www.madaboutherbs.org
Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved. A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Sprinkle some of these herbs into your meal tonight and youll have found the quick, easy and tasty way to improve your own and your familys health!
Welcome to your free report on Healthy Cooking with Herbs! Herbs can be used in so many ways ranging from culinary flavouring to dyeing clothes. The wonderful health benefits of adding herbs to your cooking are often overlooked. They add fragrance, colour and flavour but also provide essential nutrients and antioxidants. This makes the addition of herbs to your cooking an easy way to enhance your general health in an enjoyable way every day! This reports emphasis is on the culinary aspect of seven popular herbs: Basil Chives Mint Parsley Rosemary Sage Thyme

I have tried to keep the information simple and practical so it is useful to everyone whether they are new to herbs or have just dabbled a bit in the past and want to know more. This document has been designed so that you can print off any page relating to the herbs you have right now, the pages can also be hole punched and filed in an A4 folder. There are more resources available on the website and within my ezine which you may also wish to print out. If you would like to receive more free and inspiring herb gardening, cooking and craft tips in my monthly ezine, please visit www.madaboutherbs.org and click on the box on the right hand side of the page. I hope you will find this information useful and will start experimenting by adding a few herbs to your meals over the next few months. Using herbs does not need to be complicated, it should be fun and easy and just relaxing to be able to do something different from your day job! Ready for some fun? Read on.

Madeleine Giddens Mad About Herbs

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved. A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Basil

Ocimum basilicum

Enjoyable Uses for Basil Add leaves to salads, soups (eg soupe au pistou), chicken, pasta and cheese dishes lovely added to feta cheese. Goes very well with tomatoes and tomato flavoured dishes, used in sauces (e.g. pesto) and with other vegetables (especially peppers, beans and aubergines). Cream cheese mixed with basil is lovely added to baked potatoes. As one of the softer leaved herbs, ensure you add the leaves towards the very end of the cooking time. It is best to tear the leaves with the fingers rather than chop. Alternatively, crush with oil in a mortar and pestle before adding to dishes. Basil goes well with garlic eg a mix of basil, garlic, breadcrumbs and grated lemon rind makes a delicious chicken stuffing. As well as combining well with garlic, it also blends well with chives, coriander, oregano and marjoram, mint, parsley, rosemary and thyme. Can be used to flavour vinegars or dressings. Mixes well with raspberries! Try adding a few leaves to a smoothie. Medical Herbalists report that basil is good for: A source of betacarotene and vitamin C. This is a cleansing herb, moodenhancing (calms the nervous system) and antibacterial. It is often used to treat kidney and urinary problems. It is also restorative, warming and aromatic. Its other properties include relaxing spasms, lowering fever, improving digestion and it is also effective against bacterial infections and parasites. If you rub the leaves onto your skin, it acts as an insect repellant and can also be used to relieve the itching from insect bites and stings. Similarly, a few pots in the windowsill or on the table outside whilst having a picnic or barbeque will help deter flies. An infusion of basil leaves can be drunk as a tea to aid digestion. An inhalation may relieve colds and headaches, exhaustion, insomnia and low spirits.
Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved. A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Chives

Allium schoenoprasum syn A. sibiricum

Enjoyable uses for chives: Just snip chives with scissors or chop with a knife and add generously to dishes. If you cook them, they lose their flavour. Goes well with most things but especially salads, meat, potatoes, avocados, courgettes, cream cheese, egg dishes, fish and seafood e.g. great with potato salad, sprinkled on top of soups, salads and omelettes. Make chive butter to add to cooked meats on serving; melts and creates a delicious flavoured sauce. Mix with sour cream or plain yoghurt and add to baked potatoes. Chive flowers also taste wonderful; add to soup or salads for colour and flavour. Combines well with basil, parsley, tarragon, coriander and fennel. Make chive butter and freeze it; just slice off sections when needed.

Medical Herbalists report that chives are good for: Reducing cholesterol and blood pressure. An antibiotic and antifungal. Contains alicin, flavonoids and phenolic acid. Aids digestion, blood cleansing. Good for clearing catarrh and protecting against colds.

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Mint
Mentha

Enjoyable Uses for Mint There are many types of mint, the uses below mainly refer to spearmint, applemint and peppermint, but feel free to experiment with the other varieties. Mint sauce and jelly are the well known uses, both go well with lamb dishes. Also used traditionally with potatoes and vegetables in the cooking water. Tear the leaves and add to a salad for a refreshing taste. Mix with sour cream or plain yoghurt and add to potato salad. Goes well with apples, gooseberries and other fruits. Can be made into a tasty herb vinegar. Leaves can be added to iced drinks in the summer. Peppermint tea aids digestion when taken after a meal. Goes well with chocolate in desserts. Blends well with dill, marjoram and oregano, paprika, parsley, cardamom, cloves, basil, ginger and thyme. Medical Herbalists report that mint is good for: Antiseptic, decongestant, mildly anaesthetic, anti-spasmodic, antiinflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-parasitic and a stimulant. Helps relieve indigestion, colic, nausea, poor appetite. Peppermint contains vitamins B1, B2, B3 and E plus calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium and zinc. Protective and mood-enhancing herb; when applied to the skin relieves migraine and other headaches. The scent aids concentration.
Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved. A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Parsley

Petroselinum crispum

Enjoyable Uses for Parsley Commonly used as a garnish. Use in a bouquet garni with thyme and bay. Flavour butters, sauces, dressings, stuffings and savoury dishes. Plain or flat leaved parsley has a stronger and some say better flavour than curly leaved parsley. A major ingredient in Fines herbes. Chewing raw parsley freshens the breath, especially after eating garlic!

Medical Herbalists report that parsley is good for: Rich in vitamins A and C and Iron. Apigenin - a flavonoid that reduces allergic responses and is an effective antioxidant. Relaxes spasms, stimulates the digestion and the uterus. Antiseptic. Reduces inflammation and clears toxins. Diuretic herb; used for treating urinary infections and fluid retention.

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Rosemary
Rosmarinus

Enjoyable Uses for Rosemary Use sprigs for roasting, grilling or on the barbeque. Make skewers from stripped, longer, stronger sprigs (soak in water before cooking) or use as they are as a basting brush. Add finely chopped leaves to soups, sauces, salads, pasta and breads such as foccacia. Goes well with apricots, aubergines, eggs, fish, lamb, chicken, lentils, oranges, pork, potatoes and tomatoes. The fresh shoots can be used to flavour olive oil or milk/cream or syrup to be used in puddings. Also delicious added to lemonade and other summer drinks. Makes a wonderful oil and vinegar. Great for marinades. An essential part of herbes de provence. Blends well with bay, garlic, chives, mint, oregano, parsley, sage and thyme.

Medical Herbalists report that rosemary is good for: Energising, aphrodisiac, cleansing and mood enhancing Anti-inflammatory, stimulating, antibacterial, antifungal, analgesic Aids digestion of fats An infusion used as a tea makes a reviving drink and can also be used as a mouthwash for halitosis or a good antiseptic gargle.

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Sage

salvia officinalis

Enjoyable Uses for Sage Add to stuffings for pork and poultry to help the digestion of fat. A common tasty combination being Sage and Onion stuffing. Add to pork sausages to flavour. Use to flavour meat stews. Lovely added to chicken dishes. Can be used to flavour breads eg focaccia or polenta. Add a few leaves to butter and melt to make a flavourful pasta sauce. Blends well with bay, garlic, caraway, marjoram, paprika, parsley and thyme. Use to flavour vinegar, oils or make a herb jelly.

Medical Herbalists report that sage is good for: Aiding digestion of fatty and oily foods. Contains vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5 and C plus calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium and zinc. Antiseptic and antifungal. Acts as a preservative; hence its use in sausages. Balances the female hormone system, including for hot flushes. Relieves indigestion. Infused and drunk as a tea helps to ease sore throats, or can be used as a mouthwash or to treat colds and flu.

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Thyme
thymus

Enjoyable Uses for Thyme Add to carrots for a wonderful flavour. Use in a bouquet garni with parsley and bay. Withstands long, slow cooking so can be added to casseroles, soups, marinades or stocks. Goes well with fish, chicken, lamb, pork and game, enhances stuffings used in poultry. Can be infused to make tea, lemon thyme makes a refreshing tea. Flowering thyme makes the best tea. Combines well with onions, cabbage, leeks, potatoes, pulses, sweetcorn and tomatoes. Caraway thyme goes well with beef, Orange Thyme with duck. Blends well with parsley, bay, basil, garlic, marjoram and oregano, mint, paprika, rosemary, savory, cloves, allspice and chillies. Medical Herbalists report that thyme is good for: Aids digestion; helps to break down fatty foods. Relieving coughs, colds and sore throats (it is an expectorant). Contains vitamins B1, B2, B3 and C plus calcium, essential fatty acids, iron, magnesium, manganes, phosphorus, potassium, selenium and zinc. Antiseptic. Antispasmodic. Thyme tea can also be used as a gargle or mouthwash to relieve sore throats or gums. Thyme tea is said to relieve a headache from a hangover.
Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved. A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

I hope you enjoyed and found the information in this mini e-book useful to you. I plan to create more e-books in the future so would love to receive any feedback about what you thought of this e-book; likes/dislikes/additional information you would like to have been included, other topics you are interested in and so on. Please email: hello@madaboutherbs.org and let me know. If you would like to receive our monthly e-mail newsletter packed with herb gardening, cooking and craft information together with details of herb events coming up and website updates, please visit www.madaboutherbs.org/newsletter to sign up and find out more. Thank you. Alternatively, feel free to email me any herb related questions (sorry, not medical ones; I am not a qualified medical herbalist, but you can visit www.nimh.org.uk for a list of qualified herbalists) and I will include them (if you give permission) in a future newsletter or on the blog. Happy Herbing!

Madeleine Giddens Mad About Herbs

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org

Bibliography Jekkas Complete Herb Book by Jekka McVicar Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Phyllis A Balch, CNC and James F Balch, M.D. Superherbs for Health and Healing by Michael van Straten Herb and Spice by Jill Norman The Green Guide to Herb Gardening by Deborah C Harding The RHS Encyclopaedia of Herbs by Deni Bown Herbs and Spices A Cooks Bible by Andi Clevely, Katherine Richmond, Sallie Morris, Lesley Mackley The Green Pharmacy by James A Duke, Ph.d. Wild Food by Roger Phillips Feasting on Herbs by Sue Lawrence A Kids Herb Book by Lesley Tierra The Herb Book by John Lust These are just a small selection of the recommended herb books available from my Amazon bookstore.

Copyright Mad About Herbs 2007 All rights reserved.

A free resource from: www.madaboutherbs.org