The Herbfarm Cookbook

by Jerry Traunfeld

Overview

Not so long ago, parsley was the only fresh herb available to most American cooks. Today, bunches of fresh oregano and rosemary can be found in nearly every supermarket, basil and mint grow abundantly in backyards from coast to coast, and garden centers offer pots of edible geraniums and lemon thyme. But once these herbs reach the kitchen, the inevitable question arises: Now what do I do with them? Here, at last, is the first truly comprehensive cookbook to cover all aspects of growing, handling, and cooking with fresh herbs.

Jerry Traunfeld grew up cooking and gardening in Maryland, but it wasn't until the 1980s, after he had graduated from the California Culinary Academy and was working at Jeremiah Tower's Stars restaurant in San Francisco, that he began testing the amazing potential of herb cuisine. For the past decade, Jerry Traunfeld has been chef at The Herbfarm, an enchanted restaurant surrounded by kitchen gardens and tucked into the rainy foothills of the Cascade Mountains, east of Seattle. His brilliant nine-course herb-inspired menus have made reservations at the Herbfarm among the most coveted in the country.

Eager to reveal his magic to home cooks, Jerry Traunfeld shares 200 of his best recipes in The Herbfarm Cookbook. Written with passion, humor, and a caring for detail that makes this book quite special, The Herbfarm Cookbook explains everything from how to recognize the herbs in your supermarket to how to infuse a jar of honey with the flavor of fresh lavender. Recipes include a full range of dishes from soups, salads, eggs, pasta and risotto, vegetables, poultry, fish, meats, breads, and desserts to sauces, ice creams, sorbets, chutneys, vinegars, and candied flowers. On the familiar side are recipes for Bay Laurel Roasted Chicken and Roasted Asparagus Salad with Fried Sage explained with the type of detail that insures the chicken will be moist and suffused with the flavor of bay and the asparagus complemented with the delicate crunch of sage. On the novel side you will find such unusual dishes as Oysters on the Half Shell with Lemon Varbana Ice and Rhubarb and Angelica Pie.

A treasure trove of information, The Herbfarm Cookbook contains a glossary of 27 of the most common culinary herbs and edible flowers; a definitive guide to growing herbs in a garden, a city lot, or on a windowsill; a listing of the USDA has hardiness zones; how to harvest, clean, and store fresh herbs; a Growing Requirements Chart, including each herb's life cycle, height, pruning and growing needs, and number of plants to grow for an average kitchen; and a Cooking with Fresh Herbs Chart, with parts of the herb used, flavor characteristics, amount of chopped herb for six servings, and best herbal partners.

The Herbfarm Cookbook is the most complete, inspired, and useful book about cooking with herbs ever written.

-8 pages of finished dishes in full color

-16 full-page botanical watercolors in full color

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780684839769
Publisher:	Scribner
Publication date:	03/01/2000
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	755,545
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Jerry Traunfeld is executive chef of The Herbfarm, where he combines a passion for cooking with a love of gardening. He teaches popular classes on cooking with fresh herbs and grows his own supply on a small city lot in Seattle, Washington.

Read an Excerpt

Introduction

When I first learned to cook, at age eleven, my mother kept herbs in jars, alphabetically arranged on a shelf. I was taught to apportion these dusty-smelling powders and flakes with the precision of a chemist — one teaspoon of oregano in the tomato sauce, one-quarter teaspoon of tarragon in the vegetable soup, one-half teaspoon of sage with the chicken — as if alchemy would occur when a recipe's formula was followed perfectly. It never occurred to me then that we could grow all these herbs in our backyard, and I had no idea how they looked or smelled before they were dried, processed, and packaged. At the time, the only fresh herb in the supermarket was parsley.

Now fresh herbs are everywhere. More often than not the word "fresh" precedes thyme, tarragon, or basil in recipes we see in print. Freshly cut sprigs of all common herbs are available year-round in supermarkets across the nation. Farmers' markets are flooded with lush bunches of locally grown herbs, and garden centers and specialty nurseries are packed with potted herbs from angelica to verbena. More and more backyards have oregano and dill planted next to the tomatoes, and pots of chives and rosemary are replacing the petunias on the patio or terrace. This availability is making a fundamental change in the way we cook.

The flavor of a fresh herb has little in common with what comes in a jar. Taste a few flakes of dry tarragon and they will seem little more than mild and musty. Then taste a leaf of fresh tarragon, just picked from the garden; it will be sweet and peppery and fill your mouth with a punchy anise flavor underscored with green savoriness. Stir a coarsely chopped spoonful of the fresh leaves into a braising pan of chicken and its flavor will permeate the juices and flavor the chicken itself. Next, compare a spoonful of dried basil with a bunch of fresh Genovese basil from the farmers' market. The flakes are insipid and lifeless, but the complex layering of mint, clove, anise, and cinnamon scents that waft from the fresh sprigs is so enticing you'll want to bury yourself in them. Pound the leaves in a mortar with garlic, pine nuts, olive oil, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, and you'll have fragrant, unctuous pesto, the nonpareil pasta sauce.

Fresh herbs offer an astounding palette of vibrant and glorious tastes, but their delights go beyond the flavors they lend to food. For a cook, there is joy in simply handling fresh herbs in the kitchen. Who can resist stroking the proud sticky needles of rosemary, rubbing a plush sage leaf, or crushing a crinkled leaf of verdant mint between their fingers? When you strip the fragrant leaves off sweet marjoram or tuck a few sprigs of shrubby thyme in a simmering stew, you feel connected to the soil and the season, no matter where your kitchen is.

I have the opportunity all chefs dream of. As chef of The Herbfarm Restaurant in the lush, rainy foothills of the Cascade Mountains, I design nine-course menus for an intimate dining room surrounded by acres of kitchen gardens. If I need a bunch of chives, a bucket of chervil, or a leaf of rose geranium, I pick it right outside. Over the course of my nine years at The Herbfarm and many years of herb gardening in my own backyard in Seattle, I've come to know each herb as an old friend, and they have offered me endless inspiration. I've written this book to share what I have learned about these soul-stirring ingredients with those who love to cook at home.

Copyright © 2000 by Jerry Traunfeld

Table of Contents

Contents

Introduction

1. Soups

2. Salads

3. Little Bites, First Courses, and Egg Dishes

4. Pasta and Risotto

5. Vegetables

6. Fish and Shellfish

7. Poultry and Meat

8. Breads

9. Desserts

10. Sorbets

11. The Herbal Pantry: Condiments and Candies

12. Beverages

13. Sauces and Other Basic Recipes

14. Herbs at the Kitchen Door: The Basics of Growing Your Own

15. Herbs in the Kitchen: Buying, Handling, and Cooking with Them

16. The Herbs: A Roll Call

17. Cooking with Flowers

Sources

Bibliography

Acknowledgments

Index

Recipe

Recipes from The Herbfarm Cookbook

Minted Orange and Red Onion Salad
4 servings

Salads of sweet orange, sharp onion, and bitter greens are common in Italy and are slowly becoming familiar on American tables. In this version, the refreshing fruitiness of spearmint complements each element well. It's a beautiful and vibrantly flavored salad that serves as an exciting beginning to a meal in any season.

1/2 medium red onion, peeled
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh spearmint
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large navel oranges
1 large bunch watercress, thick stems removed
2 tablespoons fruity extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Onion. Very thinly slice the onion using a mandoline, Japanese slicer, or sharp thin-bladed knife. In a large mixing bowl, toss it with the vinegar, mint, and salt.

2. Oranges. With a large chef's knife or serrated knife, cut off the tops and bottoms of the oranges. Place them cut side down on a cutting board and cut off the peel and white pith with a knife in thick vertical strips, following the curve of the fruit. The oranges should have no part of the peel, orange or white, left on it. Cut the oranges lengthwise into quarters, then slice the quarters crosswise 1/4 inch thick. Toss the orange with the onion.

3. Finishing with the salad. Wash the watercress by swishing it in a deep basin of cold water. Lift it out of the water and dry it in a salad spinner or on a clean towel. Add the cress and olive oil to the orange mixture and toss. Taste and season with black pepper, and additional salt if needed. Serve at once.

VARIATION
Substitute 1 fennel bulb, shaved or thinly sliced, for the watercress.

Green-Roasted Fish Fillets
4 servings

This is a wonderfully flavorful and very easy way to prepare fish. The fillets are marinated and roasted in a thick coat of fresh herb purée made from cilantro, parsley, and mint. It keeps them especially moist in the oven and imparts a vivid freshness without overpowering delicately flavored white fish.

HERB PASTE
1/2 cup (gently packed) fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup (gently packed) fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/2 cup (gently packed) fresh spearmint leaves
1 tablespoon freshly ground dried coriander seeds, untoasted, or 1 teaspoon fresh green coriander seeds, finely chopped
2 green onions, white and green parts, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Thinly sliced zest of 1/2 lime (removed with a zester)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1-1/2 to 2 pounds skinless medium-firm white-fleshed fish fillet, such as halibut, sea bass, cod, or rockfish

1. Herb paste.Process all the ingredients for the paste in a food processor to a fairly smooth purée. Transfer it to a glass or stainless-steel mixing bowl.

2. Marinating the fish. Remove any bones that may remain in the fillet, cut off any gray fat that was next to the skin, and cut the fish into 4 equal pieces. Toss them with the herb paste until all surfaces are evenly coated. Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap and let the fish set at room temperature for 15 to 30 minutes.

3. Baking. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Arrange the pieces of fish in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold them in a single layer without touching. Spoon any of the herb paste left in the bowl over the fish so that they are covered with an even coating. Bake until, when you peek inside a piece, the last bit of translucence is fading from the interior of the flesh, 10 minutes per inch of fish thickness. Serve right away.

Lavender Ginger Panna Cotta
8 servings

Panna cotta is a simple Italian dessert -- really nothing more than sweetened milk and cream set with gelatin. I can't resist flavoring it with fresh herbs, and I especially like this combination of lavender and ginger. It's a seemingly light yet satisfying sweet for any season.

2 teaspoons vegetable or nut oil for the molds
3 cups whole milk, plus an additional 1/4 cup if needed
1 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lavender buds, or 2 teaspoons dried
6 1/4-inch-thick slices fresh ginger
1/4 vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup Cognac, kirsch, or additional whole milk
1/2 ounce unflavored gelatin (2 packages)
1/2 cup sugar

1. Molds. Very lightly oil 8 4-to-5-ounce molds, such as ramekins, custard cups, or disposable clear plastic cups and set them in a baking dish or cake pan so that you can move them as one.

2. Infuse the cream. Pour the milk and cream into a 2-quart saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the lavender, ginger, and vanilla bean if using, push them under the surface of the liquid with a spoon, and immediately remove the pan from the heat. Cover the pan and steep for 30 minutes. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a large liquid measuring cup, pressing down firmly on the herbs to extract all of the liquid from the leaves. Add fresh milk if needed to measure 4 cups.

3. Panna cotta.Pour the Cognac, kirsch, or additional milk into a 2-quart saucepan. Sprinkle with the gelatin and let it soften for 5 minutes. Add the sugar and 1 cup of the infused milk. Place the pan over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the gelatin and sugar are dissolved and the mixture is just beginning to simmer. Stir in the remaining infused milk. Ladle the mixture into the prepared molds and refrigerate until set, about 3 hours.

4. Serving. Remove the custards from the refrigerator 30 minutes before you are ready to serve them. To unmold, use your finger to gently pull and release the custard from the side of the mold all around the top. With your finger still pulling in one spot to allow air under the custard, turn the mold upside down over a dessert plate and let the custard slip out.

VARIATIONS

Surround the panna cotta with one of the following:
Fresh berries
2 cups sliced apricots or fresh figs warmed in a small skillet with 1/4 cup honey
3/4 dried tart cherries soaked in 1 cup hot lavender-infused simple syrup for 2 hours
Sliced fresh ripe mango

_{Recipes from The Herbfarm Cookbook, copyright © 2000 by Jerry Traunfeld. All rights reserved.}

Editorial Reviews

Darina Allen Ballymoe Cookery School, Ireland For over thirty years I've grown, cooked, experimented with, and been excited by fresh herbs, yet I found this meticulously researched book fresh and inspirational. Jerry Traunfeld's flavor combinations and beautifully written prose are irresistible.

Jasper White author of Lobster at Home I am amazed by the scope of this book! First, it is a great cookbook, full of beautifully conceived ideas and recipes that teach the subtleties of cooking with fresh herbs. Second, The Herbfarm Cookbook is a valuable reference, with helpful charts, line drawings, and botanical illustrations. An outstanding book!

James Peterson author of Sauces and Vegetables How do I use herbs? Which herbs go with what? How do I know which to combine? These, the most asked of all kitchen queries, are answered with clear reasoning and sound intuition in Jerry Traunfeld's The Herbfarm Cookbook. Jerry Traunfeld's simple and honest recipes burst with flavor and will have you rushing to the kitchen to cook and to the garden or window box to plant.

Sylvia Thompson author of The Kitchen Garden and The Kitchen Garden Cookbook A brilliant work, brimful of invaluable know-how and astonishing combinations of flavors. Jerry Traunfeld's book has become an instant favorite in my kitchen and my garden.

Marion Cunningham author of The Fannie Farmer Cookbook The Herbfarm Cookbook belongs on your bookshelf. Remarkable and original in the use of herbs, this is not only a collection of sparkling recipes, it is also the best herb reference book I've ever seen.

Dan Hinkley Heronswood Nursery, Kingston, Washington As I read through the pages of this book, I was transfixed by the text and style — it is rare that one can come across such books that are born from pure passion and translate such excitement and erudition to the reader. I found myself immersed in the undistilled passion of the craft that Jerry has perfected.

Emelie Tolley author of Herbs: Gardens, Decorations, and Recipes Anyone interested in herbs or cooking will be delighted by this superb collection of inventive recipes that range from Baked Mussels Stuffed with Mint Pesto to Black Pansy Sorbet. The information on growing herbs and basic herbal cooking techniques is a bonus.

From the Publisher

Taking Herbs to New Heights

For many years, cooks looking for fresh herbs in the supermarket had to content themselves with a few limp bunches of curly parsley. How much things have changed! Now even the most basic grocery store is likely to carry the more flavorful Italian parsley along with fresh basil, rosemary, thyme, dill, sage, mint, cilantro, and chives year round. Gourmet stores yield treasures like lemon thyme, Thai basil, lemon verbena, sorrel, fresh oregano, and tarragon, and at farmers' markets adventurous cooks can find anything from rose geranium to savory to angelica. What to do with this bounty? Jerry Traunfeld, chef at the legendary Herbfarm restaurant outside of Seattle, Washington, has the answer. He has penned a beautifully produced, comprehensive new guide to growing and cooking with the incredible variety of culinary herbs available to home cooks today. Traunfeld offers fresh takes on classic herb dishes like pasta with pesto and poached salmon with tarragon sauce along with innovative new creations like Potatoes with Lavender and Rosemary and Apple-Rosemary Soufflé. This is where to turn if a friend with a kitchen garden brings you a handful of anise hyssop—try Anise Hyssop-Poached Peaches—or if you're intrigued by the aroma of a bunch of lovage in the gourmet store, a delicate accent in Halibut Baked with Leeks, Apple, and Lovage. Traunfeld also includes an extensive herb glossary, a growing guide, and information on buying, handling, and cooking with a wide variety of herbs both common and obscure. Sections of color photos and beautiful herb illustrations add to the book's appeal. The Herbfarm Cookbook will inspire herb lovers to new heights in the kitchen and in the garden as well.

bn.com

In his debut cookbook, Traunfeld elevates herbs to celebrity status. Chef at the Herbfarm restaurant near Seattle, he marries friendly flavors (Tomato and Fennel Soup, which includes French tarragon, and Pork Chops with Sage, Onion and Prosciutto). He also employs unusual and bold strokes to create such tantalizing dishes as Oysters on the Half-Shell with Lemon Verbena Ice, Potatoes with Lavender and Rosemary, Grilled Marjoram-Scented Corn, Saut ed Duck Breasts with Mint, Coriander, and Olives and Halibut Baked with Leeks, Apple and Lovage. Pointing out that herbs and flowers are nothing new in dessert-making, Traunfeld is particularly successful with sweets; he combines flavors with a masterful touch, exemplified by Pear, Maple and Rosemary Clafouti, Pumpkin-Bay Tart and Raspberry and Rose Geranium Sorbet. A summer's abundance of herbs can be persuaded to satisfy well after autumn's frosts with such fare as Apple-Thyme Jelly, Plum and Lavender Chutney and Candied Angelica. Several herb-based drinks are also provided, including the Herbfarm Champagne Cocktail, wherein a single herb leaf or sprig is crushed between the fingers, dropped into an empty champagne flute, then filled with the proper potable. Concluding the book is an extensive chapter outlining individual herbs and their cultivars as well as advice on growing and harvesting them. With herbs increasingly common in supermarkets, this compendium of recipes and useful facts is ideal for cooks eager for new taste temptations. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

The Herbfarm Cookbook, by Jerry Traunfeld, is the guide I've dreamed of almost since my mother sent me, at age four, toddling into the garden armed with blunt tipped scissors to harvest mint for iced tea…every recipe I've tired from the The Herbfarm Cookbook has been excellent.
—Fine Cooking

Kay Fahey