24 



CULINARY HERBS 



drying and infusing, may be secured when the plants 

 seem ready to flower, the harvest being made as 

 soon as the dew has dried and before the day has 

 become very warm. The leaves of parsley, however, 

 may be gathered as soon as they attain that deep 

 green characteristic of the mature leaf; and since 

 -the leaves are produced continuously for many 

 weeks, the mature ones may be removed every week 

 or so, a process which encourages the further pro- 

 duction of foliage and postpones the 

 appearance of the flowering stem. 

 To make good infusions the 

 freshly gathered, clean foliage 

 should be liberally packed in stop- 

 pered jars, covered with the choicest 

 vinegar, and the jars kept closed. In 

 a week or two the fluid will be ready 

 for use, but in using it, trials must 

 be made to ascertain its strength 

 and the quantity necessary to use. 

 Usually only the clear liquid is em- 

 ployed; sometimes, however, as with mint, the 

 leaves are very finely minced before being bottled 

 and both liquid and particles employed. 



Tarragon, mint and the seed herbs, such as dill, 

 are perhaps more often used in ordinary cookery as 

 infusions than otherwise. An objection to decoc- 

 tions is that the flavor of vinegar is not always 

 desired in a culinary preparation, and neither is that 

 of alcohol or wine, which are sometimes used in the 

 same way as vinegar. 



Herb Solution 

 Battle 



