Oregano pizza recipe

The time has come to start posting some recipes on the blog too. One of my favorite dinners is pizza, we discovered the other night it is even better with the fresh oregano. We picked this from little herb garden 2.

I admit we don't make the base ourselves as the ones from the supermarket turn our great. First add the oregano.

Then the prosciutto and some shredded cheese (use a mix of mozzarella and tasty)

Then some green olives that have been stuffed with capsicum. Always break them in half to make sure there are no stones hiding.


Then add artichoke hearts, more prosciutto and more cheese and oregano. Cook at 180 degrees for about 25 minutes.

This is the end result. Yummy.
I give credit to my boyfriend as he made this and I took the pictures.

Oregano

The oregano is starting to flow over the edge of herb garden 1. Herbs looks great when they start to cascade and grow where they want to. I looked up the plants name origin on Wikipedia and it’s from a Greek translation that roughly means delight in mountain. I have included the link at the bottom of this post so as you can read up on more oregano info if you like.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregano

The progerss of herb gardens 1 and 2

It's funny how things work. Herb garden 2 was planted 1 day later than herb garden 1 and it is doing so much better. It is most likely that the plants are happier in their environment. I have been rotating them to make sure they both receive even amounts of light.

Here is a close up picture of herb garden 2. It looks so lush and full. I feel very pleased at how it is progressing. Taking into account it was only planted 24 days ago it is a huge success.

Herb garden 1 is a little slower to flourish. The mini tomato is unfortunately dead. This has been removed. I went back to the nursery and its brother and sister mini tomatoes looked a little worse for wear too. I think when it was planted it had already peaked. You can see the space in the middle where the tomato used to live. Any ideas for a replacement would be appreciated.

This is the dead mini tomato, as you can see I was hopeful it would come good.

Perennial basil

The perennial basil has grown so much since it was planted in herb garden 2. It makes the little herb garden look so full and fresh. I am in the process of choosing a recipe that I can use lots of it for as it is stealing a lot of light from the smaller plants below. I will probably make a basil pesto to marinate chicken in and make it into chicken burgers. Perennial basil has a stronger flavor than regular basil and it better used in cooking for this reason.

rip little rocket

I have a confession, the little rocket is no longer residing in the little herb garden. I think I may have killed it with love so to speak, so I am doing what what any good gardener would do which is to remove it and replace it with a slightly larger stronger specimen.

The below picture is of the new rocket forest. This rocket may do better as it has been planted as a seedling plant rather that by seed. Time will reveal the truth.

The mini cos on the right hand side is looking a lot healthier so I am keeping it alive so as I can eat it in my salad sandwich.

The Marjoram is about to flower

Although we only planted the Marjoram just over a week ago it is about to flower. This is great as it is a perennial herb which means it will continue to grow once it has flowered, and will live all year round. Marjoram is a great flavor to add in meat, egg and vegetable dishes. It origin is the Mediterranean. As usual I can't wait to start cooking with this herb. I will add links to recipes once I start to do this.

lemongrass

The lemongrass is looking great. It has such a vibrant color and a lovely smell when the leaves are brushed. It is going to get to 1.2 meters tall so I better keep an eye on it. I am looking forward to making a Thai curry with this as I have heard this is a must have ingredient for this cuisine. This herb can also been used to make an herbal tea. This type of tea has medicinal qualities too. One of the benefits of drinking this tea is it will re-energize a person.

The lemon thyme is smelling fantastic

In herb garden 1 we have planted lemon thyme. This has the most wonderful smell when the leaves are rubbed. It can be used in cooking and is especially good with fish and chicken. It can also be added to boiling water to make a soothing tea. We also have thyme growing in the same little herb garden. This has a much stronger flavor. It tastes great with tomatoes and is traditionally used in a bouquet garni in soups and stews. The other ingredients used in bouquet garni are parsley and bay leaf.

Butter lettuce

As I have mentioned in a previous post I have included lettuce in the little herb garden as it goes so well with herbs in a salad. The above variety is the butter lettuce. It is still very small and won’t be ready to harvest for a least another 4-6 weeks depending on its growth. Lettuce is also great as a garnish. When making a cheese platter with antipasto a few leaves of lettuce on the base can make all the difference, especially when it is freshly grown.

little rocket

When we started off herb garden 1 we planted rocket from a seed packet. You will not believe how fast it has grown before our eyes. It was planted on New Year’s Eve and is already quite tall. There is something really great about having herbs and salad leaves growing on your window ledge that you can pick as you need them, they taste so fresh and are such a pleasure to watch grow. I have included oregano in the above photo so as you can see how it is coming along too. Oregano tastes great fresh but has a stronger flavor when it is dried.

growing fast

The plants are growing so fast, its because it has been so sunny the last couple of days and the little herb garden has had plenty of water too. The perennial basil have started flowering and has the sweetest little white flowers. We chose the perennial basil so as we can have basil to cook with all year around. We also have the regular sweet basil growing in the same little herb garden. Basil would have to be one of my favorite herbs. It tastes great with tomatoes and olives and can be eaten raw or cooked, either way it's really yummy.

herb gardens 1 and 2

Hi guys,

I have loaded up herb gardens 1 and 2 so as you can see the pictures. I love how green they look. I have them growing on the window ledge in the bedroom. There is enough sun here to keep them happily growing. I have chosen to use self watering pots as it gives the plants water as the need it from the bottom of the pot without giving them too much. These save water too.

the fun has begun (my first post)

Hi Guys, On New Years eve I planted the 1st of my herb gardens and on New years day the 2nd. I will call them herb gardens 1 & 2. I have chosen to do a blog on herb gardens as I love gardening. I have included some tomatoes and lettuce as these taste really great with herbs. I have stated off with a photo of the soil,tools and plants needed to create you own herb garden as it is really easy. You will need a pot, soil, gloves, herbs and water. Water and sun are really important as they help the plants to grow. With out one or the other the plants would not survive. The water comes at the end once the plants are planted. I encourage you guys to ask me questions if you like to help you with your herb gardens as I would be happy to assist.