Basil

I've tried growing basil on my balcony for some time now and it always seems to dry out and die on me within a week. I guess I just don't have green fingers. So I buy it instead but my green grocer is too friendly with me and gives me too much, so I've had to figure out what to do with too much basil. Let me start with the first method which I've used quite successfully previously. I simply chop it finely, mix it with a little bit of water and then freeze it in a plastic bag for making ice cubes. This way I always have a quick cube to add to sauce, soups etc. The downside is that it changes colour and becomes quite dark so it's no good for garnishing. The same method works fine with parsley and cilantro. But nothing substitutes the freshness of freshly plucked herbs, so these are only suggestions if you end up with too much like me. Here are another two methods I find quite useful:

Here's the leftover bunch of basil.

By wrapping them in a dampened (not soaking wet) kitchen towel and putting them in a airtight plastic bag they wil last quite a long time in the fridge (I've had them up to 2 weeks).

Method 3: Pick the washed leafs and put them in a blender and pour plenty of olive oil over.

Blend until smooth.

And pour it into a bottle. This is delicious and will actually only get stronger within a few days. Squirt it into sauces, onto pasta or with some fresh tomatoes. You can also make it into lovely pesto by adding some pinenuts, a bit of garlic and some shredded parmesan. Will last a couple of weeks in the fridge.