When November draws near, here in central Texas, we rev up our harvesting. One arctic blast of air and the plants are gonners! Just like cooking in bulk actually reduces work load, so does harvesting in bulk. When I look at the full basil plants, drooping with leaves, begging to be poured as pesto over al dente noodles, the first thing I do is make sure I've got all my pillowcases washed.
huh? Yes :).
Typically, I'll pull up the whole plant, take it to the kitchen table and start picking off the leaves, keeping an eye out for bugs as I go. Once in a big bowl, I wash them with a tablespoon of white vinegar, rinse them, then lay then out on a pillowcase (cotton is best) and spread them as evenly as possible. The rest of the plant goes into the compost bin.I fold the pillowcase in half, place them in a cool dark place, most often back into the linen closet with strict instructions to my husband (though, who am I kidding? he would never think to change his pillowcase :D). Three days later, they're nice and dried, without much stress, so they retain that wonderful smell. I slip them into some cleaned out spice jars and we're ready for winter!
