Origin: Kenya

• Description
• Applications
• Storage
• Recipe

• Chives grow in clusters, their blade-like leaves growing straight upward. The green leaves are hollow and come to a point. Chives can grow up to two feet tall in ideal conditions and can spread out up to 12 inches around. They have a mild onion flavor, that doesn't tend to leave a long aftertaste. Chives sport globular spiky, pinkish-purple flowers in the early summer months, which are also edible and share the same mild onion taste. Some varieties of Chives have white and red flowers.

• Chives are used as both a garnish and as an aromatic herb. Typically, Chives are added at the end of the cooking process because they lose flavor when heated. Bundled together, the herbs are added to stocks and soups and removed at the end of the cooking process. Fines herbes are also used fresh, chopped and mixed, and added to salads. Add chopped Chives to potato dishes, quiches, scrambled eggs, or a bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese.

• Fresh Chives can be stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, as long as they are kept dry, for up to a week.

• Chive and Parsley Pesto

  Ingredients:

  1 packed cup of fresh parsley leaves
  2 packed cups fresh chives rough chopped
  1 clove peeled garlic
  juice of 1 lemon 2-3 Tbsp
  a handful of toasted walnuts
  1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
  1/2 cup olive oil more if needed
  1/2 tsp salt
  1 lb spaghetti
  

  Instructions:

  1. Put the pesto ingredients in a food processor and pulse until broken down. Scrape down the sides of the container, then process until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the container again as necessary. Process in the olive oil until the pesto loosens into a sauce consistency. Taste and adjust any of the ingredients to your liking.
  2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta.?Then toss with a generous amount of pesto, and serve immediately.