Bouquet Garni

Bouquet Garni

Spices and aromatic herbs lend flavour to most savoury dishes, including soups, broths, stews, and sauces. Bouquet garni are small bound muslin sachets filled with herbs to savour food during cooking especially slow cooked food, but should be removed before or during serving.

Aromatic Dishes

To make a bouquet garni cut out a piece of muslin 6 inch 915cm) across and place some herbs and spices in the centre. Gather the bundle together and tie with thread or raffia.

Bay, parsley, and thyme are the most usual ingredients for a bouquet garni but you can combine any herbs and spice you choose to suit the dish you are making.

A blend of lemon peel, parsley, celery leaf, cardamon and saffron goes well with rice. 

Fish stews are best with star anise, lime, parsley and dill.

Far Eastern dishes are enhanced by a bouquet garni of basil, chives, oregano, and bay. 

For lamb, bay leaves, rosemary, crushed garlic and orange peel will give any lamb dish a special hint of herb flavour.

I hope everyone is having a good day or evening where ever you are.

Cottage journal inspirations

Just some pictures from around the home, nothing fancy.

Simple hand embroidered from vintage embroidery designs to make up into sachets for some potpourri.

Indulging the sweet tooth...not too many. I'm working on dieting.

Flower Salads

Several common flowers are edible - and add an element of colour and surprise to an ordinary green salad. Not all flowers are edible, though, so make sure the ones you choose are, and wash and dry thoroughly before using. Common flower edibles include Nasturtiums, roses, borage, marigolds, squash flowers, and violets.  

I hope everyone is having a good day or evening where ever you are.

Rose and Spice Potpourri

This mixture has a dusty appearance because of the spices. A few perfectly dried rose buds, whole dried miniature roses or  dried petals can be used on the sides and tops of glass jars to brighten this beautiful but simple potpourri.

Ingredients:

4 cups dried rose petals
1 cup mixture of freshly ground cinnamon, cloves and a little nutmeg
1/2 cup orrisroot powder ( Note: I used a couple of ground chips of rose resin as a fixative instead of orrisroot powder)
10 drops rose oil

Rosebuds, whole roses, or petals for decoration

Method:

Mix rose petals and spices thoroughly with your hands. Blend oil and orrisroot powder together with your fingers and add to the petals. Put mixture into an airtight container and allow to mellow for 3 weeks before transferring to jars or bowls.

I hope everyone is having a good day or evening where ever you are.