Thanks for the Boursin Cheese spread recipe. I did post on the Herbs Forum hoping to get recipes/proportions for using DRIED herbs to make mixes.. Eventually I did get one but thought you might appreciate what started me on this quest. This what P Allen Smith had to say about herbes de Provence: "Herbes de Provence is an essential ingredient in my summer kitchen. The flavor is a natural fit with so many of the dishes of the season. Mixed with olive oil, Herbes de Provence is perfect for roasted chicken or potatoes. I love to sprinkle it over homegrown tomatoes with salt, pepper and a little feta cheese. This herb blend originates in Provence, France, down in the southwest near Italy. It is an assortment of herbs that reflect the traditional, native herbs commonly used by cooks from this region. Common herbs are thyme, fennel, sage, summer savory, rosemary, coriander, basil, anise, mint and tarragon. Lavender is sometimes added to the blend, especially here in the U.S. Traditional cooks in the region don't have a "mix". Instead they use the herbs as needed to suit their tastes. Spice wholesalers are responsible for the dried blends commonly found in stores. You can easily prepare Herbes de Provence with the herbs growing in your garden. During the summer months use them fresh as a bouquet garni for soup or stew. The traditional French bouquet garni is a small "bundle" of herbs tied together with cotton string or put into a sachet or tea strainer and added to the recipe. This method makes the removal of the herbs much easier before serving the dish. It is usually comprised of parsley, thyme and a bay leaf but you won't stray from tradition if you just use what you prefer. Herbes de Provence are also delicious chopped and sprinkled over any number of fresh veggies. Be sure to prepare a dried blend at the end of the growing season to use during fall and winter. My Herbes de Provence recipe includes sweet marjoram, thyme, sweet basil, rosemary and lavender. In addition to tasting great, these herbs are some of the easiest to grow." I hope this information is helpful to those who have not used herbes de Provence. Also, I had visions of using the dried mixes for gifts as well as for my own use. jude

The info from NCHFP was very interesting. Rosemary, I'm sorry you felt as if you were being singled out. The responses were not intended as rude, especially from those specific people who replied to that post. They were merely pointing out that altering approved recipes changes the equation, which is also what Dave was referring to when he asked if the NCHFP reply also knew of your decision to double. I'm sure if you called and asked your extension office would tell you the same. Substitutions, additions, or assumptions based on a different recipe have the POSSIBILITY of having dire consequences, not an automatic death sentence. It's all dependent on what level of risk you're willing to assume. I'm sure the recipes are tested to be much safer than the absolute minimum, so as to not cause issues with inadvertent oopsies. People on this forum were right to correct a tip that could mislead other people in the future on something that might be a much bigger safety issue--who knows who might read that thread in two years. They do it to educate and help, not to put people down. Personally, I have learned so much from being a part of this forum and am grateful. Aside from safety issues, another reason to not increase herb/spice quantities is that they change flavor over time in the jar. Many herbs are really best with just a short (or no--basil) cook time, and longer just brings out bitter notes. I just opened a two-week old jar of apple butter that was amazing at canning time, but just that period has changed its flavor, causing the spice to become nearly overpowering.

Both chives and cilantro taste like lawnmower clippings when dried. Blech! So I make chive butter, rolled into a log and popped into the freezer. Perfect for baked or mashed potatoes. Or on top of a steak or fish. You can also add some minced shallots. Cilantro I just toss into a zip bag and freeze. Squeeze the air out of the bag and it is less bulky in my over-stuffed freezer. Basil is also frozen this way. Parsley is dried in a dehydrator and then kept in the dark or the color will fade out. The micro method works too, or you can put a cookie sheet in the oven and dry them. Same for thyme, rosemary. (But I do bring the pot into the house for winter and can cut fresh. It sits in my living room.) Karen, dig up some chives, root and all, pot it up and bring it indoors. If they start to get lanky and floppy, shake the pot or put a fan on them to strenghten them. Now next season, you will have triple the amount in the ground to give to neighbors. In about 3 years, they will run and hide when you come by!

I have loved hearing what you all are growing. Very impressive. It's so much fun to grow and use herbs. Too bad we can't all get together and swap herbs or visit each other's gardens! There are lots of websites with info on how to preserve herbs. It's wonderful to grow and preserve them because they are expensive at the grocery store and probably have pesticides, etc. on them. I dislike buying one container of an herb which I usually use in one recipe. My herbs are scattered around the yard--two among the roses, one in the semi-shade garden, rosemary in a pot. It would be nice to have a dedicated herb garden but it didn't happen that way. I used oregano in chicken chili last night, but I know now I didn't use enough. Here, bay is a tree, and I don't recall seeing a "bay plant" in a nursery. I'll definitely watch for it. As for basil, it grows so fast and big here and blooms, and I wonder if that affects the taste, so I didn't grow it this year. And don't forget the herbs can make interesting teas, some with medicinal properties.