Cranberry Chutney Recipe for the Holidays

Okay, I know this site is mostly about herbs and how to grow them at home....but I have to share this awesome cranberry chutney recipe since the holidays are here. You might consider the ingredients to be more spice than herb. While we tend to think of herbs as mostly the green leafy plants and spices are more dried, the American Spice Trade Association defines spices as "any dried plant product used primarily for seasoning purposes." So you could let me off on a technicallity since that would seem to include herbs as well.

So spice food up with my spice recipe ( or herbs as we'll call them for now ):



CRANBERRY/APRICOT CHUTNEY SAUCE

INGREDIENTS:
· 1/4 cup diced dried apricots
· 1 (12 ounce) package fresh cranberries
· 1/2 cup raisins
· 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
· 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
· 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
· 1 pinch ground cloves
· 1 cup water
· 3/4 cup white sugar
· 1/2 cup cider vinegar
DIRECTIONS:
1. In a medium bowl, mix together the apricots, cranberries, raisins, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and cloves.
2. In a medium saucepan, boil water and sugar, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Add the dried fruit mixture and vinegar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Serve immediately, or refrigerate in a covered container


If you can't find fresh cranberries, substitute (2) 15 oz cans of whole cranberries, drain most of the juice before adding.

Enjoy!

Not to cold, not to hot to grow herbs at home

So now you have your seeds or seedlings, what are we to do with them? Just put them in the ground and hope they grow? Not hardly...but you might be surprised to learn that you can grow herbs indoors or outdoors. Drainage is the most important factor. Make sure your site drains water off to keep the roots from becoming drenched.

Outdoors, dig a trench to around 14-18 inches, layer the bottom with crushed stone, add some sand or compost, then replace the soil. Indoors, use a planter or pots, place small pebbles at the bottom, mix with sand and add potting soil. Make sure there is a drain pan to catch any over flow at the bottom of the pot.

For a nice touch, a baker's rack indoors or out lined with your pots and planters can add a decorative touch.

Herbs need sunlight, so pick a spot where they will get at least 6 hours a day. Keep moist, but don't over-saturate. Bring plants in if freeze conditions are expected or cover.

So there you go...you're well on your way to impressing your family and friends with your mini herb garden. We'll talk more about uses and specifics later. For additional resources, from books to tools, go here.

If you don't like getting dirty, I found a cool way to grow herbs without soil, check this out!

What herbs to grow at home?

If you read the previous post, I gave you some ideas to brainstorm what you might want to grow. Here's a little more detail to help you narrow down your selection.

Many cookbooks will give you some ideas and uses for the many varieties of herbs. Here is a quick course.

Herbs with strong accents: rosemary, sage, winter savory
Herbs strong enough for taste: dill, mint, sweet marjoram, thyme, sweet basil
Herbs for blending: chives, parsley, summer savory

Also important to the selection process, consider the growing cycle of each herb. These can be split into Annuals ( plants that bloom one season then die ), Biennials ( plants that live two seasons, blooming only in the second season ), or Perennials ( bloom each season once they are established ). Here's where some herbs fall in:

Annuals: basil, dill, summer savory
Biennials: parsley
Perennials: chives, marjoram, mint, thyme, winter savory

We'll talk about site selection in the next post. In the meantime, if you want to buy your seeds, Go here

Is it just me, or is it hot to grow herbs at home?

You’ve seen the cooking shows, you know fresh is best. Do you want to really impress your guests? With all the focus on taste, it only goes to figure that it is hot to grow herbs at home. It’s not too hard to learn how to grow herbs if you follow a few simple steps:

1) Decide what you want to grow. Seems obvious as the first step, right? But how do you do that. Think about the recipes you make, what herbs do you use right now. Check the local spice aisle at your grocer for ideas. Still stuck? Here’s a good starter list of some of the more popular herbs:

Parsley, chives, sage, thyme, mint, basil, marjoram, cilantro, and savory.

That’s a start. I’ll tell you a little more about each of the above in the next post plus the next step. In the meantime, if you can’t wait to get started, Click here Until next time…