Feast or Famine.

After 22 days (August 6th-27th) without a drop of rain, we've had 1.2 inches since last night with a total of 3-5 inches forecast. So, after a sopping wet June and July, and a mostly parched August, we're back to opening the floodgates. As I feared, the ground being baked hard by the hot, dry weeks is making water absorption difficult, and there's a lot of standing water.

I did manage to pickle about two pints of jalapenos, and have been drying herbs for the winter as well. After a few years of experimentation, I've found that the best way to accomplish this while maintaining maximum flavor/aroma is to dry them in the refrigerator, and then store them as whole has possible.

Pick the leaves of your herbs (basil, thyme, sage, etc. - even chamomile flowers), and lay them out in beer trays lined with a single layer of paper towels. Cardboard beer trays are much better than metal cookie sheets because they allow better breathing beneath the layer of herbs. If you use different sized beer trays, you can also stack them alternately in the fridge, so that you can dry several herbs at once and avoid crushing them. They take longer to dry in a refrigerator, but they keep a lot more of their color, and I think, flavor.

Onc completely dry, store as desired, but keep the leaves whole. Only break them up when you are about to use them. Crush them in your hands, as this will release the essential oils which give them their flavor/aroma. You'll be amazed at how much closter to fresh they are.