Substitute for fresh basil?

[kentgirl]

I'm making a recipe called Tomato, Potato and Basil Skillet for dinner tonight (a friend gave me this one). We are going to my niece's concert tonight, and I wanted to make something quick and easy.

Anyway, the recipe calls for 1/3 cup minced fresh basil. I don't have fresh basil. I have the jar of basil leaves. Can I use this, and is so how much?

Thanks!

[sneezles]

kentgirl
One tbs fresh equals one tsp dried. So a third of a cup equals about 5 tbs so I'm guessing 5 tsps dried.

[kentgirl]

Thank you sneezles. I knew I'd get a quick response...You're great!

I absolutely cannot stop at the grocery store tonight, and I have all the ingredients at home. I really should think about growing my own herbs.....

[sneezles]

You're welcome and if it turns out, how 'bout sharing the recipe?
I have tried upteen times to grow my own but have NEVER succeeded. Will try with plants this Spring instead of from seeds.

[laughsandlaughs]

Do you have any other fresh herbs? Another kind of fresh might be better than the prescribed basil if it's dried.

[kentgirl]

I have no fresh herbs....

Here's the recipe....I'll substitute 5 tsp of dried basil for the fresh....What do you think? Should I send my DH to the store??

Tomato, Potato and Basil Skillet
Makes 4 servings

1 Tbsp olive oil, divided
3 cups sliced potatoes (suggest new potatoes)
1/3 cup minced fresh basil
2 whole eggs
2 egg whites
2 Tbsp skim milk
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp dry mustard
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
2 cups sliced plum tomatoes

Heat 1½ tsp oil in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Layer half of potato slices in skillet. Cover and cook 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn potatoes and cook, covered, 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove potatoes from skillet. Repeat with remaining 1½ tsp oil and potatoes.

Arrange all potatoes in skillet. Sprinkle with basil. Whisk together eggs, egg whites, milk, mustards, salt and pepper in small bowl. Pour over potatoes. Arrange tomatoes over potato mixture. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 10 minutes or until eggs are set.

Calories 260; Fat; 7; Sat Fat; 1; Protein; 9; Carbs 42g; Chol 106mg; Sodium 394 mg; Dietary Fiber 4g
Diet exchanges: 2 Starch; 2 Vegetable; ½ Fat

[Michael Smith]

Send the boy to the store! Seriously, there is no substitute for the aroma and flavor of fresh basil. It's that good.

In terms of growing basil, not sure what the problem is but the seeds propagate readily and transplant nicely but they wilt off if too damp. Live seedlings are pretty cheap too. Basil grows well in the same conditions that ripen tomatoes - Hot & Sunny with good drainage. Don't set the plants out until average temp is around 70 - consecutive cool nights below 50 will shock the plants. Regularly pinch the plants for best yield and cut off the flowers when it bolts in hottest summer. 4 plants will give you an abundance for pesto!

[Emdg]

When I need fresh herbs and don't have them, I use dry and combine it with chopped fresh parsley. Sometimes the basil looks to wilty at the store, but parsley is readily available.

[laughsandlaughs]

I'd visit the store too. Fresh basil has a different aroma and flavor than dried and since that's a prominent flavor in the recipe (it's included in the name after all!) I think you need the real deal!

[Wendy w]

Thanks for posting the recipe Kentgirl, it looks good.

Fyi: I learned the following tip from a friend of mine who is gardener "extrordinaire": after using the leaves from fresh basil, cut the bottom of the stems at an angle and immerse in a vase or jar of water. Within a week or so, roots will sprout and you will have small amounts of fresh basil to use in the kitchen.

I tried this a couple of years ago and it didn't work but after seeing her mother's plant in her kitchen, my friend encouraged me to try it again because there are other times that it will-like right now! I want to try it again soon so that I may start my basil to put in a pot later. Let me know if you should try it and what your results are.

Wendy

[tobykitty]

Okay, you guys, I just got back from the store and saw this recipe. I have fresh cilantro and parsley but no basil. Do you think a substitution would be okay? And which is preferable?

[Beth]

Fresh basil really is wonderful, and it will grow in this area Sneezles. I have usually grown from seedlings, but I let at least some go to seed at the end of the summer and have gotten lots of volunteers the next spring. The first year we planted here, we had plants 4-6 ft tall! Attack of the killer basil! Our soil was so rich in nitrogen, we got lots of basil and beautiful tomato plants, but no fruit.

I mentioned this once before, but if you want to try a basil that doesn't bloom (so you only pinch to make your plant bushy) try to find a Sweet Aussie. They are hard to find, but they don't bloom. Take cuttings to root and grow indoors over the winter for next year's plants.

[kentgirl]

I decided to send my husband to the store for fresh basil. According to him, some woman had just raided the store and bought all the fresh herbs. The produce guy told him that she was making a salad for 200 people and she bought all their tomatoes, cucumbers, bagged lettuce and herbs!

So he brought me "freeze-dried" basil. I have never heard of it. But here's the funny part...we couldn't open the darn thing! Between the two of us....we literally could not open the bottle. It had some weird kind of lid and we couldn't open it! I even called the company, and caught some lady as she was leaving for the day. She finally decided I had a defective bottle. There I was on the phone getting directions on how to open a spice bottle, and my husband was cracking up laughing.

So in frustration, I grabbed my bottle of dried basil, and when I twisted the lid open, the basil inside just went flying all over the place! By this time, my husband was laughing so hard...that he eventually had me cracking up too!

When all calmed down, I made the recipe with 1 tsp of dried basil (that's all I had left), and now that I re-read the recipe, I only used 2 cups of potatoes, instead of 3!

Bottom line...we didn't enjoy it so much! But it had potential....I think.