Well-Seasoned
Mint
Varieties of mint have been cultivated for centuries. Valued by the Romans as an herb to rub on cooking boards before other foods were chopped and prepared, mint has served to cure many ills throughout the centuries. Citizens of Athens reserved mint for rubbing on the arms. Mints were grown by medieval English gardeners who harvested them by the bushels-full to toss underfoot as air freshener. Once introduced into the Americas, mints thrived so quickly that they became veritable weeds in the moist, fertile soil.
Since the 14th Century, mint leaves have been used for cleaning and whitening teeth. Mint extracts are still used to flavor toothpastes, gums, and candies as well as sweetened beverages and jellies. Several perennial varieties are easily grown in our region, require little maintenance, and are bee magnets. Mints can be dried, chopped fresh and crushed to flavor a variety of dishes.
Minty Spaghetti Squash
- 1 spaghetti squash
- 3 T. olive oil, or melted, unsalted butter
- 1 T. lemon juice
- 1 t. finely chopped mint
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pierce skin of squash in several places, bake in pan, whole, until tender; 50 – 70 minutes. Cool to the touch before slicing. Secure squash with a hot pad and carefully cut in half; remove any seeds. Whisk all other ingredients together. Prick inside flesh of squash and slowly drizzle half of the flavorings on; letting them soak in before combing the flesh with a fork. Scrape spaghetti-like fibers away from the shell, toss with other half of mixture and serve steaming on a platter for an experi-mint in high-fiber, low-fat fall cooking.
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