Gastronomic Journey: Basilicum Tormentum

There is no way for me to say this without sounding like a complete maniac, so I’ll just come out with it: Nothing gets my blood flowing like basil. I don’t mean that it is pleasing to my palate (it is); or that it is my favorite ingredient (it is); but that I am utterly obsessed with its arresting fragrance.

As soon as the basil in my garden is ready for picking, I am out there like a wanton lover, inhaling its scent so hard that I become deprived of oxygen, and feel myself swaying in a dreamlike haze. After tearing up the leaves to sprinkle over a bowl of tomatoes, my fingers are perfumed for the rest of the day, and I can return to my basil daydreams with the mere wave of a hand.

I’m not sure I’ve experienced a lust quite like it — I simply cannot get enough. This year I’ve experimented with adding the torn leaves to my bath so I can smell its ethereal aroma in my hair; I even keep a few leaves on my desk so I can rejuvenate my senses during the workday, allowing the captivating scent of anise to coat my palate as I muddle through the tasks at hand. Perhaps some sort of twelve-step program is in order, because my greed is out of control. (read more)

gilded fork, food, food writing, basil, basilicum

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