16 mint basil recipes

Mussels and shrimp with penne in a fresh tomato sauce with garlic, basil, mint, and a splash of brandy. A rustic Italian seafood pasta dinner.

Traditional tabbouleh salad with fine bulgur wheat, fresh mint, parsley, lemon juice, and ripe tomatoes. A bright, herby Middle Eastern side dish served cold.

Lobster smoked over black lychee tea, brown sugar, and rice, then wrapped in rice paper with ripe mango, jicama, fresh herbs, and bean thread noodles. A spicy mango-sambal dipping sauce ties it all together.

Fresh corn and summer squash sauteed in a cream sauce infused with whole cloves, coriander seeds, cinnamon, and jalapeno. A refined seasonal ragout with serious depth.

This is a vibrant colourful dish that has Summer BBQ ‘written all over it”. Adding mint to the pesto brings in a classic flavour accompaniment to great Australian Lamb – fabulous with a glass of Banrock Station Shiraz Mataro, 2008, £5.99 at Sainsbury’s, Somerfield, Tesco, Waitrose and Thresher.

Wild rice and lentil salad with brown rice, tri-color bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, and fresh herbs in a fat-free tomato-herb vinaigrette. A colorful, high-fiber grain salad.

Try this blend of the sweetness of the salmon, richness of black beans and the zestiness of the topping for a taste treat.

Garden-loaded ratatouille sauce with eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, and sweet potato tossed with ziti and showered in fresh basil and mint. A vibrant, plant-based pasta that eats like a celebration of summer produce.

Authentic Hanoi-style beef pho with charred aromatics, star anise, cinnamon, and a 6-hour broth. Crystal-clear, deeply savory, topped with paper-thin raw beef cooked by the hot soup.

Seared salmon over loaded seafood fried basmati rice with oysters, shrimp, scallops and crawfish, drizzled with chipotle sesame vinaigrette. A Southwestern-Asian mashup plate with bold layered flavors.

Italian meat sauce mix is a bulk-batch freezer sauce: hot Italian sausage and ground beef slow-simmered for 8 hours with tomato puree, basil, and hidden broccoli and cauliflower florets. Makes 8 pints to stash.

.

Basic bread with a hint of basil that will keep you in the kitchen until it's done!

Spiced pound cake soaked with a fragrant orange-basil syrup. The warm syrup is slowly drizzled into the cake so it soaks deep into every slice, creating a moist, citrus-scented loaf with a hint of fresh herb.

Cozy white bean chicken chili spiced with ground red chile, basil, and a warm hint of cloves. Simmers for an hour and serves 6 with tortilla chips on the side.

Easy white bean and chicken chili simmered with cilantro, basil, ground chiles, and a hint of clove. One Dutch oven, ready in about an hour, finished with fresh tomato and tortilla chips.