Freezing Herbs

By Phran Novelli

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - It's hot - open the freezer. Freezing herbs is faster than drying them and they taste fresher. My mom has always kept parsley in the freezer, and so do I - along with several kinds of basil, mint and other herbs from my garden.

If you're gathering herbs on a hot day, bring them inside right away or put them in a glass of water while you keep snipping so they won't wilt. Keep each herb separate - unless you want to create a mix you often use in recipes.

Rinse them in a big bowl of cold water to let any dirt drop to the bottom, then them dry in a towel, and spread the herbs out on sheets of waxed paper (so they don't stick) - on a cookie sheet and pop them in the freezer. After an hour or so, quickly transfer frozen herbs into freezer bags or containers. Spreading the herbs out makes them easy to use later, because they freeze individually instead of fusing into a clump.

Then, months from now when you're cooking, you can just grab as much parsley or basil as you need and shatter the frozen leaves with your hand into a soup or sauce.

Read more about preserving herbs: Counties.CCE.Cornell.edu/schenectady.