I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.

I read that they "are somewhat similar to oregano and thyme," (tastewise) so
I guess you could substitute a little of one or both of those in a pinch.
(?)

Interesting other uses for bay leaves too. 2 examples:

"Bay leaves can also be scattered in a pantry to repel meal moths,
flies, roaches, and silverfish."

"In the Elizabethan era, some people believed pinning bay leaves
to one's pillow on the eve of Saint Valentine's Day would permit
one to see one's future spouse in a dream."

All of the above quotes came from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_leaf

You might want to read that. It's a short but interesting rundown of the bay
leaf.

Gary

PS - the bushes grow wild like weeds on the Outer Banks of NC. Every time I
went on a surfing trip to Cape Hatteras, I would always stop along the road
and pick a big bag of leaves. It was a nice bonus to a fun surfing trip.

On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:03:25 -0400, Gary > wrote:

>I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
>Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
>call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
>think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.

If I went to make nearly any soup and didn't have bay leaves, I'd wait
until I did. To me, they are the umami that makes soup, soup.

>
>I read that they "are somewhat similar to oregano and thyme," (tastewise) so
>I guess you could substitute a little of one or both of those in a pinch.
>(?)

good pun, but the substitution wouldn't work for me.

>
>Interesting other uses for bay leaves too. 2 examples:
>
>"Bay leaves can also be scattered in a pantry to repel meal moths,
> flies, roaches, and silverfish."

That didn't work for me when I had those damn moths one time.
>
>"In the Elizabethan era, some people believed pinning bay leaves
> to one's pillow on the eve of Saint Valentine's Day would permit
> one to see one's future spouse in a dream."

That one did-- I'm apparently not far enough in the future to marry
her yet, though. [Is Angie Dickenson still alive?]

Jim

On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:14:27 -0400, Jim Elbrecht >
wrote:

> On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:03:25 -0400, Gary > wrote:
>
> >I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
> >Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
> >call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
> >think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
>
> If I went to make nearly any soup and didn't have bay leaves, I'd wait
> until I did. To me, they are the umami that makes soup, soup.

I think bay is one of those flavors that when you're used to it in a
certain dish, it's an essential ingredient... but if you've never had
it there, it's no big deal. I never use it in soup and wasn't brought
up eating bay in anything so I don't use it very much.

There was one dish in my husband's family that I liked to much I
wanted to learn how to make it. My SIL told me how she did it, I made
it and it tasted fine but something was missing. I got the
instructions again and followed them to a T, but it was still not
right. The third time I spoke to her about "something is missing" she
told me about the bay, which turned out to be it... but that's the
only dish where I think bay is an important component.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:03:25 -0400, Gary > wrote:

>I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
>Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
>call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
>think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
>
snip
They are very important. They round out the flavor, especially in
soups. If the bay leaf isn't there I am wondering what I did wrong.
Janet US

Janet Bostwick wrote:
>
> On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:03:25 -0400, Gary > wrote:
>
> >I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
> >Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
> >call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
> >think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
> >
> snip
> They are very important. They round out the flavor, especially in
> soups. If the bay leaf isn't there I am wondering what I did wrong.
> Janet US

Thanks Janet. I'll make sure to buy some today. I've always used them and
never have substituted. I was just wondering if I could without serious
consequence. Better to be safe than sorry, eh?

Gary

On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:14:25 -0600, Janet Bostwick
> wrote:

> On Sun, 29 Jul 2012 07:03:25 -0400, Gary > wrote:
>
> >I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
> >Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
> >call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
> >think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
> >
> snip
> They are very important. They round out the flavor, especially in
> soups. If the bay leaf isn't there I am wondering what I did wrong.

It's a subtle flavor... my SIL tells me if you use too much, your dish
will taste like medicine - so I try not to do that.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

"Gary" wrote in message ...

I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.

I read that they "are somewhat similar to oregano and thyme," (tastewise) so
I guess you could substitute a little of one or both of those in a pinch.
(?)

Interesting other uses for bay leaves too. 2 examples:

"Bay leaves can also be scattered in a pantry to repel meal moths,
flies, roaches, and silverfish."

"In the Elizabethan era, some people believed pinning bay leaves
to one's pillow on the eve of Saint Valentine's Day would permit
one to see one's future spouse in a dream."

All of the above quotes came from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_leaf

You might want to read that. It's a short but interesting rundown of the bay
leaf.

Gary

PS - the bushes grow wild like weeds on the Outer Banks of NC. Every time I
went on a surfing trip to Cape Hatteras, I would always stop along the road
and pick a big bag of leaves. It was a nice bonus to a fun surfing trip.
*******************

You'd be surprised! Bay leaves can pack quite a punch. I add them to soups
and stews all the time. Also to beef chuck roast. As with any [dried]
herb, the older the leaves, the less pungent they are. I store dried herbs
in the freezer. They really do keep bugs out of flour, etc.

Jill

On Sunday, July 29, 2012 10:10:36 AM UTC-4, jmcquown wrote: about storing flour with bay leaves.

I'll have to try this - just dumped almost 5 lb. whole wheat flour -- tiny ants had invaded ( or were they already 'there' when you buy?) I had the flour in what I thought was a very tightly sealed Rubbermaid.

I buy as few bay leaves as I can find - at the rate of usage, they last me forever.

On Jul 29, 6:03*am, Gary > wrote:
> I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
>
I prefer powdered bay leaf.
>
> Gary

--Bryan

Bryan wrote:
>Gary wrote:
>> I'm out of them and need to buy some this week.
>>
>I prefer powdered bay leaf.

Whole bay leaf is more potent, remains potent far, far longer in
storage, and releases flavor throughout the cooking process rather
than shoot its load all in one wussy dribble.

Bryan wrote:
>
> I prefer powdered bay leaf.

I tend to crush them immediately before adding to the cooking pot. No
need to remove the crunchy leaf later that way.

On Tuesday, July 31, 2012 12:12:12 AM UTC-5, Doug Freyburger wrote:
> Bryan wrote:
>
> >
>
> > I prefer powdered bay leaf.
>
>
>
> I tend to crush them immediately before adding to the cooking pot. No
>
> need to remove the crunchy leaf later that way.

I'm on my last bag of Penzey's powdered. It is still potent. When that's gone, I guess it's either inferior Mexican powdered, or using that tiny Cuisinart thing, that I really never use for anything else, for a bay leaf pulverizer.

--Bryan

Bryan wrote:
> Doug Freyburger wrote:
>> Bryan wrote:
>
>> > I prefer powdered bay leaf.
>
>> I tend to crush them immediately before adding to the cooking pot. No
>> need to remove the crunchy leaf later that way.
>
> I'm on my last bag of Penzey's powdered. It is still potent. When
> that's gone, I guess it's either inferior Mexican powdered, or using
> that tiny Cuisinart thing, that I really never use for anything else,
> for a bay leaf pulverizer.

Technology works. I crush the dried bay leaves with my fingers.

On 2012-07-29 11:03:25 +0000, Gary said:

> Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
> call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
> think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.

Last week for fun I put a single bay leaf in my rice cooker when I
cooked one cup (raw rice). It had a mild but distinctive taste.

In digging through a French cookbook to plot some new dishes for
upcoming weeks I note many thinks have a bouquet garni made with
parsley, thyme and 1 bay leaf.

gtr wrote:
>
> On 2012-07-29 11:03:25 +0000, Gary said:
>
> > Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
> > call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
> > think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
>
> Last week for fun I put a single bay leaf in my rice cooker when I
> cooked one cup (raw rice). It had a mild but distinctive taste.
>
> In digging through a French cookbook to plot some new dishes for
> upcoming weeks I note many thinks have a bouquet garni made with
> parsley, thyme and 1 bay leaf.

I'm thinking maybe I should put a single bay leaf in my mouth and suck on it
for a short while, just to get the real taste of it. From there, I'll have
better knowledge of whether to add it to my soups or whatever.

G.

On 8/6/2012 10:57 AM, Gary wrote:
> gtr wrote:
>>
>> On 2012-07-29 11:03:25 +0000, Gary said:
>>
>>> Then I got to wondering just how important are they in many recipes that
>>> call for them. Just how much flavor actually comes out of one? Wouldn't
>>> think that a bay leaf or two would do all that much to a gallon of soup.
>>
>> Last week for fun I put a single bay leaf in my rice cooker when I
>> cooked one cup (raw rice). It had a mild but distinctive taste.
>>
>> In digging through a French cookbook to plot some new dishes for
>> upcoming weeks I note many thinks have a bouquet garni made with
>> parsley, thyme and 1 bay leaf.
>
> I'm thinking maybe I should put a single bay leaf in my mouth and suck on it
> for a short while, just to get the real taste of it. From there, I'll have
> better knowledge of whether to add it to my soups or whatever.
>
> G.
>

You are right about this. I found a bay leaf in my stew last night and
was wondering what that dried leaf actually did to the stew and actually
considered tasting it - but didn't. I used two small leaves, probably
more out of habit than anything.

Pork adobo, OTOH, needs a good amount of bay leaves. I use about 6
leaves. Boy, that's tasty stuff!

On Mon, 06 Aug 2012 11:33:53 -1000, dsi1
> wrote:

>
> Pork adobo, OTOH, needs a good amount of bay leaves. I use about 6
> leaves. Boy, that's tasty stuff!

Adobo is the "dish" where I consider bay leaf essential. Leave it out
and something is definitely missing.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

Gary > wrote:
>
>I'm thinking maybe I should put a single bay leaf in my mouth and suck on it
>for a short while, just to get the real taste of it.

I'm thinking Gary can suck a penis, then to get the taste out of his
mouth he can suck a boy leaf for a palate cleanser... but he may
really like the taste of penis, so forget the boy leaf. hehehe

Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> Gary > wrote:
> >
> >I'm thinking maybe I should put a single bay leaf in my mouth and suck on it
> >for a short while, just to get the real taste of it.
>
> I'm thinking Gary can

<snip>

I had a feeling that sentence didn't sound quite right. heh heh
Don't you have some grass to cut or something?

G.

On 2012-08-06 20:57:07 +0000, Gary said:

> I'm thinking maybe I should put a single bay leaf in my mouth and suck on it
> for a short while, just to get the real taste of it. From there, I'll have
> better knowledge of whether to add it to my soups or whatever.

It should come as no surprise that sucking it won't provide the same
taste as leaches out into a soup or how it mixes well with other
flavors. If you really want to know what it's like, put one in a
steamer for a few minutes, then take the lid off. Taste it then if you
like.

wrote:
>
> They grow readily as a house plant - I keep mine trimmed into a puff
> ball shape by nipping out any shoots, newly picked have far more
> flavour than dried.

Actually, maybe not more flavor than dried?

"The fresh leaves are very mild and do not develop their full flavor
until several weeks after picking and drying."

Again, that quote comes from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_leaf

G.

Back then, I used my fresh picked but also dried most of them.

Janet wrote:
>
> I grow it (laurus nobilis) in the garden and pick leaves to dry and
> store for kitchen use. The dry ones have a more intense flavour than
> fresh, imho.

It's a sub-tropical plant, right? Is it small enough that it could be
grown indoors as a house plant in zones that have winter? I might
consider either a Turkish or California bay (two very different plants)
as a house plant here is Chicago metro.

On 8/1/2012 11:33 AM, Doug Freyburger wrote:
> Janet wrote:
>>
>> I grow it (laurus nobilis) in the garden and pick leaves to dry and
>> store for kitchen use. The dry ones have a more intense flavour than
>> fresh, imho.
>
> It's a sub-tropical plant, right? Is it small enough that it could be
> grown indoors as a house plant in zones that have winter? I might
> consider either a Turkish or California bay (two very different plants)
> as a house plant here is Chicago metro.
>

There are instructions obtainable by Googling about container growing
even if it is really a small tree.
--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not" in Reply To.

"Doug Freyburger" > wrote in message
...
> Janet wrote:
>>
>> I grow it (laurus nobilis) in the garden and pick leaves to dry and
>> store for kitchen use. The dry ones have a more intense flavour than
>> fresh, imho.
>
> It's a sub-tropical plant, right?

Not at all!

Bay is hardy outdoors -9C which is what we get here - but that is frost, not
snow. I have 3 plants in my garden in big pots and the pots havent' been
moved or touched ofr many years but sit out in exposed positions.

Janet lives in Scotland so couldn't be described as 'sub-tropical'


consider either a Turkish or California bay (two very different plants)
> as a house plant here is Chicago metro.

If you could find and external wall of your house that is south facing and
doesn't get snow cover, try to grow common Bay in a big pot. It doesn't
mind cold (well at least a certain amount of cold) but may not like snow
cover for months of the year.

On Wed, 1 Aug 2012 15:33:37 +0000 (UTC), Doug Freyburger
> wrote:

>Janet wrote:
>>
>> I grow it (laurus nobilis) in the garden and pick leaves to dry and
>> store for kitchen use. The dry ones have a more intense flavour than
>> fresh, imho.
>
>It's a sub-tropical plant, right? Is it small enough that it could be
>grown indoors as a house plant in zones that have winter? I might
>consider either a Turkish or California bay (two very different plants)
>as a house plant here is Chicago metro.

My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.
--
Susan N.

"Moral indignation is in most cases two percent moral,
48 percent indignation, and 50 percent envy."
Vittorio De Sica, Italian movie director (1901-1974)

On 8/2/2012 7:30 AM, The Cook wrote:

> My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
> This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
> pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
> the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.

As a kid I remember Bay Laurel growing in the woods behind our house
with beautiful pink flowers in the spring. Is that the same family of
bay? I guess I could google.

On Sat, 04 Aug 2012 17:37:33 -0400, Cheryl >
wrote:

> On 8/2/2012 7:30 AM, The Cook wrote:
>
> > My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
> > This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
> > pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
> > the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.
>
> As a kid I remember Bay Laurel growing in the woods behind our house
> with beautiful pink flowers in the spring. Is that the same family of
> bay? I guess I could google.

Googling, it looks like Mountain Laurel has the pink blooms and it is
related to azaleas and rhododendrons. Here's what Wiki has to say
about bay trees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_Laurel

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On 8/4/2012 5:57 PM, sf wrote:
> On Sat, 04 Aug 2012 17:37:33 -0400, Cheryl >
> wrote:
>
>> On 8/2/2012 7:30 AM, The Cook wrote:
>>
>>> My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
>>> This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
>>> pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
>>> the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.
>>
>> As a kid I remember Bay Laurel growing in the woods behind our house
>> with beautiful pink flowers in the spring. Is that the same family of
>> bay? I guess I could google.
>
> Googling, it looks like Mountain Laurel has the pink blooms and it is
> related to azaleas and rhododendrons. Here's what Wiki has to say
> about bay trees http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_Laurel
>


Reading that, my memory is very flawed. Not pink flowers. I can't
remember now but I remember something that was called "Laurel". I
remember that because I grew up in Laurel MD.

Thanks for making it easy for me by looking it up. I'm a mess, really.

On 04/08/2012 5:37 PM, Cheryl wrote:
> On 8/2/2012 7:30 AM, The Cook wrote:
>
>> My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
>> This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
>> pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
>> the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.
>
> As a kid I remember Bay Laurel growing in the woods behind our house
> with beautiful pink flowers in the spring. Is that the same family of
> bay? I guess I could google.


I suppose it is no surprise that bay leaves come from a bay tree. I wish
there was demand for maple leaves. Every fall I rake up enough maple
leaves to fill several trucks.

Dave Smith wrote:

> I suppose it is no surprise that bay leaves come from a bay tree. I wish
> there was demand for maple leaves. Every fall I rake up enough maple
> leaves to fill several trucks.

So you never have to scrounge for kindling, right?

On 8/4/2012 6:58 PM, Dave Smith wrote:
> On 04/08/2012 5:37 PM, Cheryl wrote:
>> On 8/2/2012 7:30 AM, The Cook wrote:
>>
>>> My friend had a bay tree that was the height of their 2 story house.
>>> This was in Virginia Beach, VA. I have a small one that is in a 12"
>>> pot that I keep on the deck when it warms up and in the greenhouse in
>>> the coldest part of the winter. This is in zone 7a.
>>
>> As a kid I remember Bay Laurel growing in the woods behind our house
>> with beautiful pink flowers in the spring. Is that the same family of
>> bay? I guess I could google.
>
>
> I suppose it is no surprise that bay leaves come from a bay tree. I wish
> there was demand for maple leaves. Every fall I rake up enough maple
> leaves to fill several trucks.

LOL! Same here! Oak, Maple and Poplar from my yard and Willow from I
don't know where but it gets all over in the fall.