Irritating Gatekeeping Mention — Due to the number of “marketers” liking posts (thereby connecting and leaving their site address), I’ve turned off post “likes.” Comments are still open.

The leaves begin to tumble, the moon rises in the very early evening, and a chill wind blows past creaking wooden shutters and underneath ill-fitting doors.

It’s time to put up the herbs.

Nothing terribly surprising — just basil, thyme, oregano, and sage — but I have a nifty way of saving fresh herbs for the entire year. (At least I think I do. For all I know, everyone else is doing exactly the same thing.)

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I set the herbs in piles and pick through everything. (I have indeed taken caterpillars out.) I drop the stems and rejects in a pile on the counter, and I drop the good stuff into a colander in the sink.

After everything is rinsed, it’s food processor time — the basil, thyme, and oregano are wozzed up together nice and small as an herbs de Provence mix.

I tuck the washed-chopped herbs into ice cube trays, cover with water, and freeze. After they’re frozen, I plop ’em in a labeled Ziploc bag and I have ready-to-go chopped fresh herbs all year long — just drop an herb cube into whatever I’m cooking. =)

The scraps and stems can be put into a bottle with warmed olive oil and placed in the sun. Strain the herbs out after a week or two, and you’ll have herb-infused olive oil.

The sage is frozen separately (not chopped) in Ziploc bags by the bunch — filled with water and frozen to wait for Thanksgiving.

Happy Autumn!