One of the responsibilities of an economical cook is to keep watch on the leftovers in the fridge, and recycle them to your family while the food is still wholesome. This is where the herbs come in. You can give a leftover ragout or stew new life with the addition of whatever harvest of fresh herbs are available and appropriate. Or take your quantity of cooked meat or veg. as a starting point, and make a brand new dish.

Tonight, in addition to a couple thick breasts left over from a chicken tandori, we had a defrosted package of chopped spinach and some cream that had been purchased for an appetizer than never got made. I’ve made tuna Florentine, so why not chicken Florentine. After adding the cream (and after it thickened, the drained chopped spinach) to some onions sautéed in butter and sprinkled with flour, the only question is what herbs are calling out to be added. We went with lemon balm, tarragon, parsley and the earliest harvest of the new thyme coming up in the perennial herb bed. Since the chicken was already pretty spicy from its first rendition, it was just thin sliced, layered in a casserole dish and covered with the Florentine/herb sauce before going in the oven.

We’ve managed to pick thyme all year, with the section potted and brought under lights last fall, staying productive through the winter. With the spring growth now coming in, we’re ready to start over, and keep the fresh flavor going.

I need to pick up a few more seedlings before my kitchen herb garden will be complete, but I’m having fun with what flavors I have on hand so far. Springtime is made for entertaining, and a cook with fresh herbs to call on, can always count on some extra compliments.

A barbeque sauce with lots of oregano and lemon balm swimming in a mix of prepared mustard, some ketchup, vinegar and brown sugar made a nice marinade for chicken thighs on the grill. Herb rice is a great accompaniment when grilling for company, and leaves the door open for any combination of the days’ herbal harvest. I used thyme and chives and baked the rice this time, since that provides more timing flexibility and can be put in the oven just as the guests are arriving. Two parts hot stock to one part rice in a 350 oven will be ready in half an hour, but still moist and good after an hour in a covered casserole. Some steamed asparagus and sliced red peppers with a liberal sprinkling of basil and tarragon makes a nice spring vegetable. Good times.

At this point in the season, oregano and chives are still my only outside herbs, although I’ve still got some pretty lush basil growing inside under lights. The garden is providing some collards and kale that overwintered, and we’ll have our first harvest of that tonight. I’m thinking a quick stir in some hot olive oil with the chives should do it for greens that young and tender.

The basil and oregano cry out pasta sauce, and I remember seeing a recipe for penne pasta with chicken and broccoli that I should have the ingredients for. I think I’ll cube some boneless chicken breasts, dredge that in cornstarch, and fry those with some garlic and onions. Add the broccoli florets, oregano and a couple cans of chopped tomatoes, and cover and simmer until the broccoli is right and the chicken finishes cooking, while boiling the pasta. Ribbons of basil will get added at the last minute when the penne and sauce are combined.

I’ve got some refrigerated crescent rolls, and I think we’ll have the chives do double duty, sprinkling a fine chop of them onto the dough before rolling them up and baking. That may be excessive, but it’s been a long winter, and I’m raring to play with my herbs.