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Herbs - Bay Leaf
Herbs - Bay Leaf Are you a winner? Did you come in first? Did you vanquish your foe? If so then you deserve a crown of bay leaves, the Greek's and Roman's symbol for the highest achievement. An honor reserved only for the wise and victorious. This fragrant bay leaf wreath was awarded to Olympic champions, to heroes of a battle, to wisest of the people. Was it not what the gods of Mount Olympus wore? You'll be the hero when you use the bay leaf in your culinary cooking of Mediterranean dishes and French Haut cuisine. The bay leaf is an essential ingredient in many of the Greek and Roman dishes. It is part of the mix of herbs known as bouquet garni. The bay leaf slowly releases its aromatic flavors in soups, stew, sauces and marinades. I've used the bay leaf whole in my black beans with ham hocks. I've made beer using the bay leaf as a preservative. Grounded the bay leave becomes an import ingredient in my blackening spices and in my BBQ rub for all meats headed to the grill. Yes, the bay leaf is a real winner. The bay leaf may be known as "Sweet Bay", "Laurel Bay", "True Laure", "Bay", "Laurier d'Apollon", "Roman Laurel", "Noble Laurel", "Lorbeer", "Laurier Sauce", and "Daphne" just to name a few. The bay leaf's origin is usually attributed to the shores of the Mediterranean where it grows a small tree on the cooler hillsides to a tree of 60 feet plus in the warmer areas near the sea. The reddish hue or olive-green bark of the tree is smooth and luxurious. The unisexual yellow flower are small and grow in small clusters which produce berries from which oil can be extracted. The leaves of the bay laurel are thick, smooth and a shinny dark green color. It is the leaves that are made into crowns or wreaths. The "bachelor's degree" from a college or university derives it meaning from bacca-laureus, or a wreath of laurel. The French word "bachelier" comes from laurel-berry. The bay laurel has had a long and distinguished career from the Delphic Oracle of Ancient Greece preforming divination rites at Delphi to your very own kitchen of meals for your heroes. The bay leaf and berries have been used in western culture to medically treat disorders as bronchitis, rheumatism, skin rashes and ear aches. The bay leaf is recognized as safe for human consumption even though the leaves, berries and oil have excitant and narcotic properties. Pregnant women should use care when using large quantities of bay leaf as it could induce labor. The list of uses of the bay leaf is almost endless. The bay leaf, the berries and the oil have been used for the following purposes: stomachic, astringent, carminative, diaphoretic, stimulated, emetic, emmenagogue, abortifacient, insect repellent, sprains, bruises, ague, altitude sickness, tooth decay and dandruff. What a list and the bay leaves are excellent in my beef stew.
The bay laurel has volatitle oil of a greenish-yellow color that can be desitlled from the leaves to produce Oil of Bays and Onguent de Laurier. Oil of Bays is used externally for sprains, bruises, etc., and sometimes dropped into the ears to relieve pain where Onguent de Laurier is used as an ointment of bay-tree for the maintenance and the protection of the feet of the horse. The volatile oil is sometimes used in cosmetic industry in creams perfumes and soaps. The Oil of Bays should not be confused with oil of Prunus Laurocerasus, or Cherry Laure which can be poisonous. The bay leaf is commercially produced in areas of Turkey, Algeria, Belgium, France, Greece, Mexico, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, the Canary Island, Central America and southwestern parts of the United States. The bay leaf from California is considered to produce the best product because of the full sun and deep soils in this area of the United States. It is recommended that when a recipe calls for bay leaf and you are using a California bay leaves that the aroma is so strong in flavor that one third of a leaf should be used when the recipe calls for one leaf. My Irish Beef Stew Recipe Ingredients * 1/4 cup olive oil
* 1 1/4 pounds stew beef, cut into 1-inch pieces (some saute the beef with one tablespoon of flour after meat has browned on one side only)
* 6 large garlic cloves, minced (more if you like can never get enough garlic)
* 6 cups beef stock or canned beef broth even water will work if the beef is good quality
* I can of Guinness beer
* 1 cup of fine red wine (I like more but use your judgment)
* 1 cup of Port wine (cheap works best)
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 1 tablespoon dried thyme
* 2 bay leaves (if you use California Bay Leaf 1 will do)
* 2 whole allspice berries
* 2 whole clove buds
* 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter (some melt the butter in another large pot over medium heat an add potatoes, onion and carrots. Sauté vegetables until golden. I use one pot. Less clean up. It's the flavors I'm after.
* 3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (par boiled until still firm)
* 1 large onion, chopped
* 2 cups 1/2-inch pieces peeled carrots
* Salt and Pepper to taste Use your own method that you like to prepare the stew; it's the ingredients that count. Some like tomato I don't.
Research From:
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/l/larbay10.html
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/Crops/Sweet_bay.html
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/med-aro/factsheets/BAY_LAUREL.html
http://www.mccormick.com/content.cfm?id=8212
http://www.spiceislands.com/ProductDetail.aspx?Id=696d4e8f-651a-46f2-be89-b229dc8fae4d
http://unitproj.library.ucla.edu/biomed/spice/index.cfm
http://www.herbs2000.com/herbs/herbs_bay_laurel.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_leaf zzzzz
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This intel was contributed by The MUSEUM
The MUSEUM
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May, 2012
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