What I hold here, my minty fresh friends, is a great big bundle of freshly harvested mint and wow did it smell amazing. This past weekend I was with my friend Josh at his cottage on Lake Simcoe when he proudly boasted that he knew of a mint patch that was ready to be harvested. Given that I was still in the foraging vibe from the weekend with David Wolfe I was all for the adventure.
We traversed through a mosquitoey path and yes, there were times we thought we’d have to head back. However, we were on a mission and we persevered, scissors in hand, and came away with quite the bounty.
Mint is a delicious, healing herb. Not only does the green make it rich in chlorophyll (the goods on chlorophyll are here), mint is great for:
- Soothing the digestive tract and reducing the severity and length of stomach aches.
- Easing the discomfort associated with irritable bowel syndrome
- Slowing the growth of many of the most harmful bacteria and fungi.
- Treating allergies and asthma thanks to the well-documented antifungal properties.
- Helping prevent cancer: mint contains a phytonutrient called perillyl alcohol, which has been shown to prevent the formation of colon, skin and lung cancer.
David Wolfe also shared the little nugget of info that planting mint around the home will help keep ants away. Many things can be done with fresh mint. I have a thing for minted pureed peas and another thing for adding some to my Sweet Potato and Mixed Bean Salad. You can also chop it fine, or mash to bits with a mortar and pestle and use it in my Prize Worthy Cocoa Mint Truffles. A huge portion of my share went straight into my dehydrator to be used as a dry seasoning and in tea mixes.
Today, we are not making any of those things. Today we are using the mint to make a summer fresh Basil Mint Pesto.
Basil Mint Pesto
1 1/2 cups basil leaves
1 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup walnut halves
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
- Toast the walnuts in the oven or pan for 5-10 minutes, turning occasionally.
- Combine the basil mint and oil in a blender until smooth.
- Add the toasted walnuts and garlic and blend until pureed.
- Add the lemon juice and salt and blend once more.
- It’s now ready to be used or stored in the fridge in an air tight container or freeze in an ice cube tray and transfer to a freezer safe container to use later
This is great as a vegetable dip, with Chip Chips, over fish or chicken or any other way you can dream up.
Here are some more photos from the harvest and check back later this afternoon for the next big announcement.
This would be me assuming my yogic/bendy mint harvesting position.
Josh experiments to see if mint works as a mosquito repellent. It doesn’t.
I know this photo is all awkward but the camera was balancing on a rock, on a timer and we were balancing on rocks between a running stream.
The bounty
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Wait… after you freeze pesto in an ice cube tray you have to transfer the cubes to a freezer safe container? Crap! I think I have a bunch of dead spinach pesto cubes in my freezer…
We have a veritable ocean of mint at the side of our house that’s threatening to overtake the neighbor’s yard. . . thanks for these ideas to use it up! (Well, I guess the bonus is no ants–on that side of the house, anyway!)
What a beautiful bunch of mint! I’ve never thought of making a minty pesto before–I might have to try this out soon before the summer fades.
Meghan, this is fantastic! Just last week I planted an herb garden in a large window box. My mint and peppermint is going great-guns (as the ladies at the garden store said it would.) I love the way chewing on the fresh leaves freshens my breath.
Mint is amazingly cooling in nature. I use in my practice during hot summer days to help clients acclimatize to the burning heat of summer. Try it, it is astonishing. Yin nourishing.
Mint is also very effective in bringing down fevers (crush fresh leaves, make a very strong mint tea, allow to cool. Soak a cloth in the tea and apply to the forehead, when the cloth gets warm from the heat of the fever, refresh it in the cool tea water and reapply).
Mint is also effective in helping with migraines and headaches. use the same method and apply the cloth to the back of the neck and the forehead.
Mint will calm insect bites and bee stings. Apply Mint essential oil undiluted to the area. Coolness replaces the sting.
I used it with my dog when he was chewing on furniture as a puppy. great deterrent.
Peppermint is the oil essential oil I would grab if I was stranded on a desert island because it is just so versatile.
Meghan that pesto looks sublime!!!
Awesome! I used way too much mint in my smoothie this morning, added another 1/2 an avocado and it balanced it out a bit. While I was sitting there slurping up my overly-mint smoothie, I was thinking to myself “Yuck… is there even anything good in mint that I am doing for myself by drinking this? I better go online and search mint’s nutritional benefits” Well nevermind! Here’s your cute post! Now I don’t feel so bad about having minty fresh breath
Holy harvest!
That mint would go well in those fresh veggie rice paper wraps of yours too!
Can I have some ?
Mint. Refreshing like you.
What a great (and refreshing) post. I can almost smell the mint. Do you have a scratch and sniff blog or something?! Love the idea of adding that much mint into the pesto. Good idea!
Melissa
P.S. Good group of photos. What a fun post!
I love mint. I have heard that too much of it has the opposite effect.
I saw the headline and thought it was one of the ones you grew on your window sill. Still awesome that you got some. You ever put any in your green smoothies?
Hey – Josh is cute! Go, girl!
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You just don’t want it to pick up odors and what not from the freezer.
Sweetness!
Too much of a good thing is never a good thing.
I agree with JMS Robertson