Things to do with Rosemary

tarawera99, Dec 21, 10:25pm
My rosemary bush is going crazy and needs a trim. Would be a shame to waste. Any ideas for what to do with tonnes of Rosemary?

BTW, anyone living in Hamilton, if you want any, let me know.

jan2242, Dec 21, 10:37pm

lythande1, Dec 22, 12:09am
Hmm. pretty much it's a list of use it in.
What we grow it for, however mega piles of the stuff. not practical.
What I do, tarawera99 is recycle it.
Use it as mulch or back into the compost heap.

wildflower, Dec 22, 2:10am
Dish has an incredible recipe for Bulghar wheat rosemary and caraway rolls; they're lovely.

tooyoung, Dec 22, 2:22am
Freeze some? Wash and pat dry the stems. Freeze then when frozen, strip the leaves for easier packaging.

kaddiew, Dec 22, 2:24am
Make rosemary & lemon salt for Christmas gifts.

sossie1, Dec 22, 2:39am
Stick loads in a bucket outside your house and give away the excess

rainrain1, Dec 22, 3:04am
It's very common and grows easily, I wouldn't worry too much. I love to pull a bit off every time I go past the shrub , crunch it between fingers, and sniff up that beautiful smell

sampa, Dec 22, 3:32am
Google rosemary kebabs for lots of tasty ideas using rosemary stems instead of wooden or steel kebabs.

uli, Dec 22, 6:00am
Just trimmed mine - any more ideas?

paora-tm, Dec 22, 6:03am
Like. Just like most herbs. You don't even need to crunch them - just run your hand through them. :)

r-mvz, Dec 23, 4:05am
I make rosemary shortbread which is lovely.

rainrain1, Dec 23, 5:06am
Can you give your recipe for the rosemary shortbread, I'd quite like to try it

venna2, Dec 23, 5:48am
If you do want more bushes, or you know anyone who does, you can easily grow rosemary from cuttings. I've got rosemary flourishing in many parts of my garden, all originally from a few cuttings from a friend.

And as someone has said above, you can make them into kebab sticks. If you're having roast lamb for Christmas dinner, of course rosemary is great with that.

jbsouthland, Dec 23, 5:57am
Twirl it around and make a wreath for your door. also dry lots and place inside a pillowcase and hang somewhere like your garage or laundry and give it a squeeze when you walk past to release the fragrance. yum
Italian flat pizza bread is nice and easy peasy . with sprigs of rosemary , splash of olive oil and rock salt sprinkled. just made from a yeast pizza base recipe .

r-mvz, Dec 23, 4:35pm
This I got from Kirstie Allsopp Handmade Showdown

250g plain flour
160g butter (unsalted)
85g caster sugar
1 large pinch salt
1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
extra sugar for dusting

Rub flour, salt and butter, stir in sugar and rosemary.
150 degrees celsius 45 minutes

Here is another link to one of Kirstie's recipes which I am keen to try as it is different from the one off the show.
http://withloveandcake.blogspot.co.nz/2011/11/kirsties-rosemary-shortbread.html

rainrain1, Dec 23, 5:43pm
Thanks very much

sampa, Dec 23, 7:17pm
Also don't overlook the non culinary possibilities - rosemary hair rinse or household cleaners for example are pretty straight forward to make. Lot s of info available on the net but usually not more complicated than adding rosemary and vinegar to a large jar to steep for a period of time. Or (back to the culinary) infuse some delicious rosemary oil to add punch to any number of things - lamb - roast veg - drizzled over home made focaccia bread. endless possibilities. :)

beaker59, Dec 23, 9:29pm
When I roast fatty meat like pork shoulder or mutton, lamb etc then I build a thick bed of rosemary branches to lay the meat on the fat drips through the rosemary and branchs keep the meat above the fat so the meat doesn't get too oily. It also perfumes the meat, the house and the neighbourhood . Unbelievable flavours.

petal1955, Dec 24, 5:31am
Lay sprigs of it between your linen in the linen cupboard. lovely

rumbledoll, Dec 24, 7:10am
I love rosemary. I'd love some cuttings, but am in CHCH. So bit impractical. Great ideas though.

tarawera99, Mar 15, 2:09am
Thanks for your ideas