
Posts Tagged ‘herbs’
simply green
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, cuban oregano, food, food photography, green, herbs, Inspiration, Photography on February 17, 2015| 2 Comments »
cuban oregano
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, cuban oregano, food, food photography, gifts, herbs, Inspiration, monotype, Photography on December 31, 2014| 5 Comments »

It is a gift that keeps giving. The herb with one hundred names. Oregano on steroids. My friend simply introduced it as cuban oregano when he handed me the little pot several years ago.

It is a hardy succulent that smells wonderful when you rake your finger gently across a leaf. And even if you aren’t gentle, and a piece falls to the soil, no problem. It roots quite easily. From my one pot, I now have several pots of oregano. Please keep in mind that some of these “pots” are the size of demitasse cups but … they are still wonderful, edible, bits of green to tuck in sunlit places.

P.S. You can view some green images in this previous post. 😉
winter growth
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged colors, cress, food, food photography, gardening, herbs, indoor gardening, Inspiration, microgreens, nature, Photography, plants, simplicity on December 29, 2014| 2 Comments »

The instructions say to plant seeds in a shallow dish and move as needed for best light. Instructions I can follow! Not sure how I’m going to serve up this first little harvest. Maybe with slices of avocado and tomatoes on toasted bread rubbed with garlic. Theoretically, this cress is a spicy herb. We shall see. I’m not sure that I grow enough at a time to benefit from the nutritional value, but the simple act of planting a few seeds in a bit of dirt and watching the sprouts rise in the sun, that’s worth the effort alone.



oregano in the hallway and …
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, tagged african violet, beauty, colors, food, herbs, indoor gardening, Inspiration, musings, oregano, Photography, plants, textures on December 15, 2014| 3 Comments »

Some folks think I yearn for a big field to garden, but I don’t. I enjoy my few clay pots and random mugs filled with dirt, tucked in all sorts of corners and moved about as my whim and the sun does strike.

It has been fun this year to grow flowers, herbs and the occasional vegetable. The trailing green growth and splashes of color have been inspiring, as well as occasionally quite tasty. Most of the herbs have died back or faded away completely with a few exceptions like the oregano.

I planted a few new seeds on Saturday. Spicy cress, fenugreek and more nasturtium. The fenugreek has already started to sprout. Perhaps I’ll be able to harvest it for Christmas. On Sunday I picked up some paperwhite bulbs with a goal to plant them in January and perhaps soon after photograph white winter blooms against a backdrop of falling snow. Until then, I have these herbs and, oh yes, that violet.

orange mint in the hallway
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged Branches, colors, food photography, herbs, Inspiration, mint, orange mint, Photography on December 4, 2014| 3 Comments »
a bit of sage and sweet marjoram
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, culinary inspiration, food, food photography, green, herbs, indoor gardening, Photography, sage, sweet marjoram on October 23, 2014| 2 Comments »
fennel green
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, fennel, food, food photography, green, herbs, Inspiration, Photography, shadows on May 27, 2014| 2 Comments »

I purchased the little pot of fennel as an experiment. Just to try growing something I’d never tried before. After an initial mishap involving watering (or lack thereof), the herb seems to be doing alright. Still haven’t really cooked with it yet, but I do love the shadows it casts.

unruly
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged food, food photography, gardening, herbs, indoor gardening, Inspiration, Photography on April 6, 2014| 1 Comment »

Meanwhile, the scallions are a beautiful, unruly mess and the lemon thyme is creating great shadows on the bookcase.

The fennel I nearly watered to death but I think I caught myself just in time. We’ll see. 😉
a new experience …
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged fennel, food, food photography, herbs, indoor gardening, Inspiration, nature, Photography, spring on April 2, 2014| 7 Comments »

My favorite flower shop, Ricky’s, has reopened, providing further evidence that Spring is truly here. He does not yet have his full array of herbs on display but he had enough to make me happy as I walked into the shop. I departed with some standard items, e.g. two different types of thyme, but I also walked out with something new that I’ve never tried to grow before. Fennel.

The resident chef seemed happy with sight of the little pot on the table. We’ll see what he does with the feathery fronds in future dishes. Meanwhile, the other indoor greenery continues to do well, bathed by the light of the new season.




a lavender light
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged abstract, herbs, Inspiration, lavender, light, Photography on January 25, 2014| 4 Comments »

I have a mouse in my house. Of course, most likely more than one at this time of year. But there’s at least one that I know of who likes to nibble at the herbs and other plants I have in various containers about the kitchen and in hallways. He loves to dig into the roots of the sage and nibble at the leaves of mesclun. He ignores the fenugreek, thyme, oregano and rosemary, although on occasion I’ve seen evidence that he has peeked into their pots. The lavender he seems to ignore completely. The bed of dirt remains untouched and the leaves uneaten. It is the one plant, aside from the African violet, that thrives this winter. The pot sits next to a western facing window. And it is the silhouette of the lavender leaves and branches against the setting sun that I captured in this photo.


