Rose & Steve's Recipes

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The technique for making infused oil is much the same whether the ingredient is basil, rosemary, oregano, garlic, chiles, mushrooms or citrus fruit. 

For every cup of olive oil, use two tightly packed cups of basil or any other soft-leaved green herb--chervil, chives, cilantro, mint. (Tarragon does not work well except early in the spring when it is very sweet, he writes. Otherwise it tends to taste bitter when infused.) 

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add the herbs, making sure that the leaves are submerged, and blanch for five seconds. 

Drain into a strainer and immediately plunge the herbs into a bowl of ice water. 

Drain well and squeeze out all liquid. 

Puree in a blender with olive oil. Strain puree immediately through a fine-mesh strainer. 

Strain again through four layers of cheesecloth. 

Put in a sterilized glass bottle, cover tightly and refrigerate. For optimum flavor, use within a week.

Chiarello recommends using a blender, which makes a finer, smoother puree and extracts more flavor than a food processor. 

To filter the mixture, he uses cheesecloth, which he first rinses and squeezes dry. Coffee filters can also be used, although they, too, should be rinsed and squeezed dry first. Patience is required. 

Pour the oil slowly, and stir occasionally. You will probably need several filters.

You can use the infused oil in, among other things, the following recipe for a vinaigrette, which tastes as good on chicken or roasted eggplant as on a green salad.

**Another trick** is to fill a mason jar with as many leaves as you can fit or want to fit. 

Fill jar with olive oil and cover with cheesecloth (I've also used plastic wrap with holes punched in the top). 

Leave it sit in a sunny window for 10 days, rotate the jar every few days. 

Strain the oil thru cheesecloth and enjoy a flavorful oil on pasta, salads, mardinades and basic cooking!