How I Pinch A Penny

I have a patch of chives in my herb garden.  They come back each year and come back two fold each time.  I love watching for the first pecks of green in the late winter.  This means that spring is right around the corner and I can PLANT THE GARDEN!! But now that the spring chives have sprung and before they wither in the summer heat it is time to cut and dry them.

Here is my modest chive patch.  I was able to divide them this spring and share with 6 of my friends.  I love to share herbs with people!  Spread the chive love.

See how the little purple flowers are starting dry and whither.  This means the tender green part is next.  Time to save what we can!

Here is my example plant.

I used pruning shears to cut all but about 2 inches of the chives.  Just grasp and clip away.  If you don’t have pruners you can use a good pair of kitchen scissors. Do NOT use your good sewing scissors.  My sister would have to  box your ears.

See? This is how many chives I got from my little patch.

All cleared out.  Now if I am lucky I will have a second crop.  We will see.

Isn’t she the cutest little helper?  She is all sweaty and covered in sunscreen but too cute for words.

Next you need to pull out all the purple flowers with stems attached.  The stems are kind of woody and not nearly as edible as the lovely green chives. Also pull out any and all of the brownish chives that have started to whither.  Also pull out any grasses or clover that was pretending to be a chive.  They do not make for good eats.

This is my pile of “junk”.  It is headed straight for the compost pile.  Got to give back to the earth what it gave us.

Now it is time to put the chives to bed. Yes, I said ‘to bed’. Take a clean set of sheets and cover your picnic table with the fitted sheet.  Line up the chives and work towards getting them into a single layer…the best you can. Then cover them with the flat sheet.  The flat sheet will keep them from blowing away as they dry in the sun.  It will also keep them clean from any droppings that my fall from the sky. I am going to leave my chives in the sun for 2 days or till dried through.  I could use my dehydrator but this would mean I would be making a second cut (or third) in the chives.  This would make another exit for the moisture and the flavor.  By keeping them whole you are going to have a better change of the flavors concentrating.  Stay tuned for another post on how I chop them for storage!

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