The dill in our garden is at its peak. It's time to harvest, freeze, share and enjoy!
We probably have over 50 plants just like this that have self-seeded themselves. We've given away and tried transplanting several of them to friends and our school butterfly garden (black swallowtail butterflies love dill). There is still a lot of dill!
Black swallowtail butterflies lay their eggs on dill, we've been watching this guy grow in our garden. |
I took another bunch to freeze, so I can have dill all year long. A couple of years ago, I tried drying the dill and using it throughout the year. It dried well, but the flavour just didn't hold up. Freezing, I find, works really well and the flavour stays true.
Drying dill in 2010, it worked, but the flavour didn't last long. |
But what I really love, is dill sauce on potatoes. Ideally, on freshly dug new potatoes - but it's a little early in the season for those. We made do with fresh dill sauce on big potatoes served with ham and red cabbage - a classic German supper.
Dill Bechamel Sauce
2 tbsp of butter2 tbsp of flour
1 cup of warmed milk
salt and pepper to taste
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsps chopped dill
Instructions:
- In a small saucepan, gently melt butter (do not let brown).
- Sprinkle in flour and mix well.
- Cook and stir for 3 minutes.
- Gradually stir in the warm milk, whisking thoroughly to ensure no lumps.
- Cook sauce over medium heat for 8-10 minutes until smooth and creamy.
- Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and dill and cook for 1 minute.
- Serve over potatoes, spaetzle, fish, or schnitzel.