Cooking with herbs

What have you done with the mint? I have both peppermint and spearmint and I use them both to make really good tea..I use either fresh or dry leaves and place them in my coffee maker..Makes great tea and don't worry, next time you make coffee, the taste is very small in the first pot you make.. I also have a mint jelly recipe that I have not tried yet, but it looks simple to make and sounds delicious.. Mmmmm. Mint jelly with lamb. Made the mint jelly; now all I need is the lamb. Did you know that mint jelly is not really green? It isn't. It's golden colored in its natural state. That green stuff you see in the stores is just food coloring. Here's a straightforward recipe for making your own, using the pectin from fresh tart apples as a jelling base. 4 lbs of tart apples (e.g. Granny Smith), unpeeled, chopped into big pieces, including the cores 1 1/2 cups of fresh mint, chopped, lightly packed 2 cups water 2 cups white vinegar 3 1/2 cups sugar (7/8 cups for each cup of juice) Combine apple pieces with water and mint in a large pan. Bring water to a boil then reduce heat and cook 20 minutes, until apples are soft. Add vinegar, return to boil. Simmer covered, 5 more minutes. Use a potato masher to mash up the apple pieces to the consistency of apple sauce. Spoon the apple pulp into a muslin cloth (or a couple layers of cheesecloth) suspended over a large bowl. Leave to strain for several hours. Do not squeeze. Measure the juice, then pour into a large pot. Add the sugar (7/8 a cup for each cup of juice). Heat gently, stirring to make sure the sugar gets dissolved and doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan and burn. Bring to a boil. Cook for 10-15 minutes, using a spoon to skim off the surface scum. Continue to boil until a candy thermometer shows that the temperature has reached 8°F above the boiling point at your altitude (boiling point is 212°F at sea level). Pour into sterilized jars to within 1/4" from the top and seal. Makes approx. 4 half-pint jars.

Ooh, I love rosemary too. I bought my mom one of those rosemary Christmas trees last year. I add it to potato wedges that I roast with olive oil and salt. It's great on grilled veggies and focaccia bread too....all with olive oil and salt. I love dill in cucumber salad and basil in tomato salad and tomato sauces.

I'd love to grow my own fresh herbs and cook with them, but I've never done that. I'm not sure I would know how to use them! I know if you're using fresh instead of something in a jar that you can definitely use much less and get a better flavor, but I haven't a clue how to prepare them once taking them out of the garden. I'm assuming most would be chopped, but beyond that, I'm clueless! My husband planted some mint and I have some catnip to plant too. I've been wanting to try some regular cooking herbs, though. Which are the best to start with?

i dnt do this...lol