Giving Bay it's Just Desserts

We often think of Bay leaves as those dry leaves we drop into soups, stews and sauces. It's a main meal type of herb. However, this pungent little leaf is more. And to honor it's place as Herb of the Year, I give you a tempting dessert recipe.

The main recipe appears in the International Herb Associations book "Bay (Laurus nobils) Herb of the Year 2009". This is a fascination collection of information, tips and recipes about and for Bay. I took the recipes from the book and played with them a little, and came up with this yummy dessert that's perfect any time of year.

Gingered Fruit with Bay Syrup


Start by making the Bay Syrup. Make a lot and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. It can also be frozen. Bay syrup can be used to flavor drinks, over pancakes, let your imagination run wild. The fragrance and flavor is spicy and sweet.

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 1/2 cups water
10 bay leaves (fresh works best but you can use dried)

Put the sugar, honey and water in a heavy sauce pan. Add the bay leaves (bruise fresh ones slightly with a spoon). Bring to a low boil over medium heat. Cover and remove from the heat. Let it sit for an hour, or until room temperature. Remove the bay leaves, squeezing lightly to get out all the goodness. Place in a container and refrigerate.

Gingered Fruit

1 pound of fruit (fresh summer fruit works best - nectarines, peaches, plums, cherries, pineapple. You can also add some dried fruit like, currants, raisins, etc.)
1/4 cup of Bay Syrup
2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice.
1 tablespoon agar agar or gelatin

Cut the fruit into pieces. In a sturdy medium saucepan, combine the fruit, syrup and ginger. Cover and simmer on medium for about 7 or 8 minutes, until the juices are flowing and the fruit is slightly tender.

Stir in the lemon juice and gelatin or agar agar (you can find this in some grocery stores, health food stores, and oriental markets). Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Turn off heat and remove from stove.

You can serve this warm or chilled. It thickens quite a bit when chilled. My favorite - take apiece of pound cake, put on a scoop of ice cream, add some of the gingered fruit and a little extra Bay Syrup. Wow, is that good.

Extra fruit can also be refrigerated and nibbled as needed.