It’s no secret that adding herbs to your favourite dishes makes all the difference to the taste, and fresh herbs offer better flavour than store bought items, but many of us shy away from creating our own herb gardens because we think it’s more difficult than it really is. Planting your own herb garden couldn’t be easier with these tips from Granny Mouse Country House & Spa’s Garden Manager, Mark Robson.

According to Robson, “there are a number of simple factors that you need to consider before planting your herb garden, including how much sunlight the herbs will get every day, the provision of good potting soil or fertilizer if you are planting the herbs in your garden, as well as whether the pots you intend to use offer suitable drainage of excess water.”

Robson suggests that if you are a herb virgin, that you first try your hand at planting Basil or Chives, as these are easy herbs to grow. They sprout quickly and are largely sturdy regardless of the conditions.

Although planting herbs in pots is often easier if you have limited space or if you have an indoor planting requirement, Robson suggests planting the herbs at ground level, as this will yield better results, and does not require a large space.

Here are Robson’s tips for four different, easy to grow herbs:

• Basil: Plant Basil in an area that receives a lot of sun and where the soil drains well. Beware of insects, as they love Basil as much as we do! Remember when pruning Basil, you need to prune from the top down.

• Chives: Chives need little care, but enjoy lots of sunshine. They can be harvested every thirty days by cutting the leaves down to the base, where they will happily flourish again.

• Mint: Considered a bit of a creeper, mint needs space to spread, which is why planting Mint in a pot is often easier. Ensure that you keep the soil moist at all times, otherwise your mint will start to dry out.

• Parsley: A hardy herb that can survive frost and often lives through winter, Parsley requires partial sun and moist soil to flourish.

With these easy tips on hand, starting your own herb garden couldn’t be easier! Remember that if you spend valuable time in your garden, you will definitely reap the beneficial rewards later – as the Proverb goes – “As you sow, so shall you reap!”

In keeping with the spirit of spring and Arbor month, Granny Mouse Country House & Spa Executive Chef, Shaun Christian is taking cooking back to the “roots”, by using fresh herbs and veggies he has picked out of the garden for his delicious Club Sandwich recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1x sliced Smoked Chicken Breast
• 4x crispy bacon rashers
• 1x Boiled egg
• 3x mini Focaccia
• Cos Lettuce
• Sliced tomatoes
• Caesar dressing

Method:

Chef Shaun Christian suggests the following steps:

Chicken:

Firstly, smoke the chicken breast by curing the chicken breast overnight. Then, mix ¼ cup sugar, ¼ cup salt and pour over breast, along with two roughly crushed cloves of garlic, a little ginger and a few sprigs of thyme. Then, rinse the breast and soak in water to remove saltiness;

Oil the breast and smoke for 30-40 minutes using a weber or a home smoker.

The focaccia:

• 500g flour
• 350ml lukewarm water
• 3Tbsp olive oil
• 5g instant yeast
• Salt
• Sugar
• Garlic and rosemary

1. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl; add the dry yeast, salt, sugar, garlic and herbs picked from the garden and oil.
2. Make a well in the centre of the flour and slowly add in the water and mix using a wooden spoon.  Mix to combine, and place a little extra flour on a flat clean surface suitable for kneading.
3. Oil your hands, as this stops the dough from sticking to you, and knead the dough vigorously for 5-8 minutes until it is silky and smooth.
4. Place dough in an oiled mixing bowl, cover with plastic and let it stand in a warm place for around 40 minutes, or till doubled in volume then repeat the kneading process.
5. Pinch off even sized balls of roughly (60g), shape into a ball, roll into oval focaccia with a rolling pin;
6. You can cook these on an open grill, on a girdle or in the oven.
7. Set aside until needed

Caesar dressing:

• 3x egg yolks
• 2-3 Tbsps. cider vinegar
• 2x cloves garlic, crushed
• 1tsp Dijon mustard
• 1tsp sugar
• 2-3 anchovies
• 1 ½ cups cooking oil (corn, sunflower, canola)
• Lemon juice
• Chicken stock
• ½ cup Parmesan cheese
• Salt

1. Place egg yolks in a jug blender along with the garlic, anchovies, vinegar, Dijon, sugar.
2. Turn on blender and drizzle in oil in a slow steady stream to emulsify (it should look like mayonnaise).
3. Add in parmesan, thin the dressing out with a few tbsp. of hot chicken stock and season to taste with lemon juice & salt

To assemble the dish:

Take three focaccia, lay down two and build layers of lettuce, tomato, chicken, bacon and egg, dress liberally with Caesar dressing, stack up, covering the sandwich with the third sandwich and serve.

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