How to Create A Dessert Garden

You may have heard of a tea garden, a culinary garden or even a fragrance garden but have you ever heard about a dessert garden?

A dessert garden is quite similar to a tea, culinary or a fragrance garden.   Many of the same herbs that you would use to make teas or grow to add to your cooking can turn ordinary desserts into delicious taste treats!

Herbs to grow in your dessert garden include: anise hyssop, cinnamon basil, lavender, lemon balm, lemon thyme, lemon verbena, pineapple sage,  rosemary, scented geraniums and of course one or more varieties of mint. The final choice will depend on your personal preferences.

 

 

 

 

Where did the concept of a Dessert Garden Sprout From?

When I was in my twenties and early 30s, I dreamt of opening a tea room.   I planned to serve flourless chocolate cake & ice tea.  I wanted to name it “Just Desserts”.  I probably would have had to serve a few other items than just flourless chocolate cake & ice tea in order to stay in business !   I didn’t open a tea room but I did start an herb business on my parents’ farm .  If you are interested in more of the back story, the details are outlined in this blog post. 

Unable to open my dream tea room, I took my love of desserts and herbs and combined them into the concept of a Dessert Garden…. sort of like “Kim Style” for the garden!

Back to the subject of growing and using Dessert Herbs…..

I recently sat down with Ahna Fulmer from the podcast imPERFECTly emPOWERED.  She is an amazing host.  She made the whole process so enjoyable!  I have included a link to the complete podcast here:

Read on for the basics of How To Create A Dessert Garden

Growing Conditions –

Most of the dessert herbs prefer full sun, meaning they will need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day to thrive.  Lavender demands more sun and very well drained soil.  Lemon verbena, rosemary, pineapple sage and the scented geraniums are considered tender perennials, meaning you will need to bring them inside for the winter if you live in an area that has cold winters.  Cinnamon basil is an annual.  The rest of the dessert herbs are considered perennials.

The dessert herbs can be planted directly in the garden, raised beds or in containers .  They work well in window boxes , terra cotta pots or decorative containers.  If planting your dessert garden in a container, just be sure there are holes in the bottom of the container or the window box to aid in draining out excess water.

More Detail about a Few of The Herbs to Grow in Your Dessert Garden

In order to keep this blog post from turning  into the Encyclopedia Britannica of Herbs, I am going to break the information into a series of blog posts.  I will highlight 4 of the herbs today.  I will share information about how to grow the particular herb and give a few examples about how to use the herb in your dessert cooking.

The Mints

Everyone is familiar with the refreshing taste of peppermint.  The mint family includes several other “flavors” or varieties that are equally compatible with desserts and can be used interchangeably in recipes calling for peppermint.

Some examples of mints other than peppermint are pineapple mint, spearmint, apple mint, candy cane mint, curly mint and orange mint.  There is even a chocolate mint!  Pictured above is Berries & Cream mint.

The mints are hardy and will adapt to either full sun or part shade.  If planted in full sun, they will require more water.  Mint can grow to a height of 2 feet.  If you are hesitant to plant mint in your garden for fear it will take over, simply remove the bottom of a large plastic pot, plant the mint in the pot and then plant the pot in the garden as shown in the picture below.  This will help to control the mint.

If you are going to plant more than one variety of mint in your garden, you will want to plant them in different areas of the garden to avoid cross-pollination.

Anise Hyssop

Anise Hyssop is actually a member of the mint family.  Fortunately it does not spread as rapidly as other mint plants.  It is more compact but can grow rather tall (4 feet tall and 2 -3 feet wide in the right conditions) so consider its location in your dessert garden carefully.  It needs to be planted somewhere in the garden where it won’t block light getting to other plants.

Anise Hyssop is a great plant to have in your dessert garden because in addition to adding flavor to your desserts, its long lasting blooms will attract butterflies to your garden!  The blossoms can be cut and added to fresh flower arrangements in the summer.

Anise Hyssop had a sweet licorice taste.  To release the scent of the licorice from the leaves while you are in the garden, simply brush the leaves gently with  your hands.  This releases the essential oils in the leaves and you should be able to smell the wonderful scents!

Lavender

Lavender needs to be planted in well drained, sandy soil in an area that will get proper air circulation and a lot of sun.  Good drainage is very important as lavender does not like to have its “feet” (roots) kept wet!

When cooking with lavender, it is the buds or tiny flowers that you want to work with, not the stems or leaves.

Pineapple Sage

Pineapple Sage can be planted outside after all danger of frost has passed.  Pineapple Sage is a tender perennial in much of the country.  It will over winter and be a perennial in zones 8 and higher.  It can grow to 3 to 4 feet tall.

Pineapple Sage is another plant that likes sandy or very well drained soil.  Water regularly while the plant is getting established and then water only when the soil is dry.

Pineapple Sage produces red blossoms in the late summer and fall.  These bright blossoms will attract butterflies to your garden.  The blossoms themselves are edible as well as looking beautiful in cut flower arrangements.

The leaves of the pineapple sage are used mostly in the fresh state.  They are delicious snipped over a fruit salad.

Introduction to Cooking with Dessert Herbs

Herbal Condiments

Herbal condiments serve as an interesting way to add herbs to your dessert making.  Herbal sugars and herbal vinegars are two examples of herbal condiments.  More information about herbal condiments can be found here:

Herbal sugars are simple to make.  When making herbal sugars, be sure to only use dried herbs.  To make herbal sugar, simply layer the dried herb of your choice with white table sugar in a covered container and let sit for several days to allow the sugar to absorb the essential oils (where the flavor comes from) from the herb.  Lavender as well as any of the mints work well in herbal sugars.  Dried Scented geranium leaves also makes a wonderful herbal sugar.

When you are ready to use the herbal sugar, place some in a shaker jar so that the dried herb bits don’t get into your herbal creation.

One of my favorite ways to use herbal sugar is to dust the bottom of the greased baking pan before adding the brownie or cake batter to the pan.  This gives the brownies or cake a subtle hint of mint.

Vinegar for dessert? Strange as it sounds, herbal vinegar can be used in various dessert recipes to add a special “zip”.  Herbal vinegars are very easy to prepare.  The specific directions can be found in this blog post. 

Herbal vinegars can be substituted for liqueurs in recipes.  Herbal vinegars that work best in desserts would be made from mint, lavender or scented geranium leaves.

Here is a fun recipe to get you started using herbal vinegar:

Kim's Krazy Kake

An easy to make Chocolate cake with a unique flavor ! Similar to a Wacky Cake

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Equipment

• 9 in round baking pan or an 8 x 8 square baking pan
• mixing bowl
• spatula
• measuring utensils
• parchment paper to line pan
• wire rack for cooling

Ingredients

  

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup baking cocoa or dutch process cocoa
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 Tablespoons herbal vinegar either mint, lavender or scented geranium herbal vinegar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup water
• powdered sugar for sprinkling on top of finished cake

Instructions

 

• in a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, salt & baking soda
  
• add 1/4 cup dutch process cocoa , mix dry ingredients together
  
• make 3 wells or indentations in the dry ingredients. In one well, add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, in another well add 1 tablespoon of herbal vinegar, and in the final well add 1/3 cup of vegetable oil.
• Pour 1 cup of water over the entire mixture and stir until well mixed.
  
• line the 9 in round pan with parchment paper
  
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
  
• Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 Minutes.
• Check to see if the cake is done by inserting a toothpick into the center
• If the toothpick comes out clean , the cake is finished baking. if not, bake for a few more minutes and re-test
• Once the cake is finished baking, place pan on wire rack and allow to cool
• After the cake has cooled, run a thin spatula along the sides to help loose the cake.
• Invert the cake onto the cooling rack Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake. Invert the cake on to a serving platter
• Dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar .
  
• cut cake into slices. Add a dollop of whipped topping if desired
  

Notes

If you don't have herbal vinegar, white vinegar can be substituted

Other substitutions & additions:  add chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or dried fruit to the batter before baking.  Experiment with different flavors of extract, such as almond or peppermint, to give the cake a different taste.

Serve the wacky cake with whipped cream, frosting, or fresh fruit.  

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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GENERAL TIPS FOR COOKING WITH HERBS

When using fresh herbs, be sure to bruise them first to release the essential oils in the herbs.  Fresh herbs can be substituted for dried herbs and dried herbs can be substituted for fresh herbs.  Just be sure to adjust the proportions accordingly.  The general rule is to use at least twice as much fresh herb as you would dried herbs.

Dried herbs should be stored in opaque glass containers in a cool, dark location.  Light and heat affect their storage life.  Herbs should not be stored over the range, although that is where they invariably end up!

If you are just starting to cook with herbs, start slowly.  Add a small amount to the recipe at a time and then taste.  Add more herbs if you wish, just remember you can always add more but you can’t remove the excess if you’ve added too much!

Herbs on the Farm

To learn more about the Dessert Herbs:

Garden of Tasty Delights Part 2

Garden of Tasty Delights ; Intro to Dessert Herbs Part 3