This year, one of my teaching partners gave me a wonderful Christmas present of herbal products from Common Folk Farm in Naples, Maine.
The first product I tried was the Herbal Pepper, which I used to season a bread and tomato casserole. While I’ve made this casserole a number of times in the past, this time I used When Pigs Fly olive bread, and seasoned each layer of tomatoes with a about 5-8 generous shakes of the Herbal Pepper.
Recipe for Tomato Casserole: Gratin Tessinois
The next product I tried was the Dill Herb Butter mix. I used 1/2 stick of Land o’ Lakes Light Butter, softened for 10 seconds in the microwave, and whisked in about 1/3 of the herb packet. This volume of Dill Herb Butter filled one of the cute little yellow butter cups that came packaged with the herbs, and was delicious on warm cornbread. I think it would also work well as a seasoning for baked haddock. This product would make a lovely hostess gift with a loaf of homemade bread.
Today I finally broke into the herbal tea sampler, which includes six different flavors and a pineapple-shaped tea infuser.
I opted to try the Cinnamon Rose Herbal Tea with a little honey, and was pleased with its fruity, spicy scent and flavor.
The tea also brewed to a rosy shade of pink, and had the perfect amount of acidity for an herbal tea, which made it refreshing while warm and spicy. The package directions suggest brewing 2 tbsp. of the tea with 6 cups of water for 10 minutes, and adding 1 cup of apple juice to sweeten the tea before serving over ice.
I plan to try the iced tea suggestion sometime in the future, but for now, I think I’ll brew another cup of hot tea and settle in for the evening.
Kellie, that was one of the best food reviews I’ve read and to be honest the articles written about our farm products don’t always get beyond the packaging…though complements on packaging are welcomed, it’s what’s inside that counts. It is the herbs and their quality that we want to share with our customers. Thank you! Not all the gifts you received are available on our web site, some are seasonal. Many are available through L.L. Bean at the Flagship store in Freeport, Me. Wishing you a Happy and Healthy New Year!