Spice up Your Night Life...with Basil!

         Pesto, spaghetti, pizza, tomatoes, zucchini, green beans, beef stew, breaded halibut. Is there anything basil can't add YUM to?
         Well, you probably wouldn't want it with your cinnamon roll, but how about a bagel or hot buttered basil biscuit? Come on say it with me-YUM!
         Prized in ancient Rome, basil symbolized love and fertility. Later Italian men plucked a sprig of basil to wear in their hair when going courting. Speaking for him, the sprig related his marital intentions. No dating games for them!
         If you want to tip the scales in your favor as well, make your meals spectacular by planting fresh basil. Then toss its brilliant green leaves into your next pasta salad, lasagna, tomato sauce, chicken dish, or bread dough. A member of the mint family, basil is quite easy to cultivate in a sunny windowsill or garden.
         For a bushy basil plant, pet your plant's leaves 6-7 times a day and rotate the pot daily. When the plant's third set of leaves appear, cut off the top to the second set of leaves. Then sit back and watch it grow, baby, grow!
         Add gourmet to homemade pizza or commercial pizza by sprinkling it with dried basil. Stir 1 teaspoon into spaghetti sauce for flair. Paired with olive oil, a teaspoon of basil is a wonderful base for sautéing onions, garlic or summer squash. Serve sprigs on tossed salads, with cheese, and in olive oil dressings to drizzle over grilling chicken or fish.
         You'll soon find this basil baby will capture your kitchen's heart!



         * DVO welcomes your kitchen hints and cooking or nutrition questions! Email us and we'll post your hints and Q/A's in upcoming newsletters! *