Last week I posted a blog about the glorious beebalm blooming in my garden. I’ve had a few requests as to how to cook with it, so here are some of my favorite recipes.

Might I remind you here, that the red-flowered monarda, Monarda didyma, has a tea-like aroma and flavor with a hint of citrus, which is delightful in beverages, with fruits and in desserts from cakes to custards and ice cream. With the exception of Monarda citriodora (lemon monarda), all of the other monardas with blooms in lavendar, white, pink, purple and fuschia contain carvacrol, which gives them a flavor similar to a spicy oregano–these should not be used in the following recipes. If you are not certain–smell and taste your monarda–and you will know.

I must say that I love bergamot with peaches and nectarines and I create many variations on that theme. I like them simply macerated together, plain or with yogurt. And I often put them on shortcakes (baked with the red flowers in the dough) with whipping cream. I make a peach and plum cake and macerate the flowers and leaves with the fruit and also chop them and put them in the cake batter. And I use them in all sorts of combinations with other seasonal fruits and make simple fruit salads like the following one.

Here is one of my favorite recipes for monarda–Summer Fruit Salad with Monarda–it is so simple and so delicious: /item/4782/summer-fruit-salad-with-monarda

Try something as simple as rubbing a beebalm leaf around the rim of your iced tea or lemonade glass, pour your beverage over ice and float a few of the scarlet blooms on top.

Right now, I have some of the bright scarlet flowers infusing in vodka, which might just remain a tincture, or it could turn into a cordial. I also have some of the blooms fermenting in a water kefir; I’ve made them with other herbs like lemon balm, lemon verbena and mint, however the bergamot is a new creation/experiment.

The following recipe is great for picnics and potlucks, since they can be made ahead and travel well. They are popular because they are different from the normal cookie-bar selection. I often refer to them as “Bergamot Bars”.

Blondies with Monarda and Apricots

For the best flavor, these bars should be made with unsalted butter for a good butterscotch taste. Use the flowers and/or leaves of the red-flowered Monarda didyma for this recipe–they have a citrusy, tea-like flavor–many of the others taste more like oregano. Orange mint, Mentha aquatica ‘Citrata’ is a good alternative to the monarda.

Makes 32 bars

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/3 cups packed, light brown sugar or demerara sugar
2/3 cup organic cane sugar
About 1 cup dried apricots
About 1/2 cup monarda flowers and/or leaves or orange mint leaves, loosely packed
2 cups unbleached flour
1./2 cup whole-wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 extra-large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan.

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. When melted, add the brown sugar and stir. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until the brown sugar is thick and syrupy, for about 4 minutes. Stir in the cane sugar until it is dissolved and remove the pan from the heat to cool.

Thinly slice the apricots crosswise. Wash, dry, and coarsely chop the monarda or orange mint leaves, there should be about 3 tablespoons of chopped herb; leave flower blossoms whole.

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and stir to blend. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture over the apricots and toss to coat them lightly.

Beat the eggs into the warm brown sugar and butter mixture (it should not be hot) to blend thoroughly. Add the vanilla and stir well.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the flour and stir until it is just blended. Add the apricots and monarda and stir until they are just mixed in. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in a preheated oven for 35 minutes, until the top is a deep golden brown. Allow to cool completely on a baking rack before cutting into bars.

This recipe is excerpted from not just desserts-sweet herbal recipes by Susan Belsinger, herbspirit, 2005 available at www.susanbelsinger.com.
 

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

Flat Soaker Hose 75 150 FT for Garden Beds

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Consistent & Even Watering Drip Irrigation Hose: Makes use of a clog-resistant fabric cover recycled vinyl for consistent slow soaking seep throughout its entire length. Deliver water to the entire area that it covers. Only certain areas of your garden bed getting watered. For waste-free watering in garden beds and other tight spaces. Waters the base of the plants so less water-related leaf damage. Linkable Garden Soaker Hose For DIY Irrigation System: End to end connectable drip water hose, flexible versatile Above-ground or bury it below a up to 3-inch layer of mulch or soil; this fit with garden hose threads and come with rust resistant end caps that make it possible to connect multiple hoses and works well with timers. Maneuverability And 100% Environmentally Friendly Drip Hose: Double layer design PVC Covered With Extra-Strength Fabric material protect from sun damage than rubber weeping hose; ensure the longevity of the soaker hose, which is ideal for you using it regularly through all seasons in your garden. Made of 100% environmentally friendly recycled vinyl, pass CA65 test, water is safe for ground which makes it perfect for use with vegetables, herbs, and other edible plants. Easy To Store Flat Soaker Hose: This irrigation drip hose flat design is kink-resistant, lies flat makes it a breeze to roll up and store for next season.The flat shape also makes it simple to snake under existing plant growth. One-Year Warranty on Flat Soaker Hoses: Ensure a water pressure of 40-90 psi for best results—hot water is not suitable.

Buy at Amazon

Corona® Multi-Purpose Metal Mini Garden Shovel

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Longer Service Life: The blade of this round small shovel is made of carbon steel, which can effectively improve the hardness by high temperature quenching, and the surface has anti-rust coating to avoid rusting. In the process of use when encountering hard objects will not bend and deformation. Sturdy Structure: The small garden shovel with D-handle, ergonomically designed grip can increase the grip of the hand when using, the handle is made of strong fiberglass, will not bend and break under heavy pressure. Quick Digging: Well-made digging shovel has a sharp blade, and the round shovel head is designed to easily penetrate the soil and cut quickly while digging to enhance your work efficiency.

Buy at Amazon

Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden, Revised and Updated Second Edition: A Natural Approach to Pest Control

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

This revised and updated edition of Jessica Walliser’s award-winning Attracting Beneficial Bugs to Your Garden offers a valuable and science-backed plan for bringing balance back to the garden. With this indispensable gardening reference—now updated with new research, insights, and voices—learn how to create a healthy, balanced, and diverse garden capable of supporting a hard-working crew of beneficial pest-eating insects and eliminate the need for synthetic chemical pesticides.

Buy at Amazon