Erica De Mane

Lemon verbena at the Union Square Greenmarket.

Recipes:

Roasted Peppers with Lemon Verbena Olive Oil
Grilled Chicken with Lemon Verbena, Green Olives, and Summer Garlic
Peaches with Lemon Verbena and White Wine

Do yourself a favor and bring a big bunch of fresh lemon verbena into your kitchen. This is an herb that smells and tastes like the world’s most fragrant lemon, very pure and direct, with no underlying hints of anything deeper, unlike, say, basil with its fennel, anise, and mint tones. Lemon verbena is strong. It makes a gorgeous sorbet. I like to just stick my whole face in a big bunch and sniff it in. It’s wonderful with just about any peach or apricot dessert, but I also love it as a flavoring with savory dishes, sprinkled over grilled chicken or stuffed inside a whole fish for roasting. I make a little lemon olive oil by mixing chopped lemon verbena, lemon juice, zest, and olive oil, and letting it all sit for about a half hour to develop flavor. Try it drizzled over seared tuna or swordfish. I’ve made little lamb meatballs, working mint and lemon verbena into them, and then cooked them quickly on a hot grill. I’ve also thrown whole branches of it into my hot bath (not the meatballs, just the herb). And just for your information, L’Occitane has an entire line of lemon verbena-scented soaps and lotions and fragrances that really capture the aroma perfectly. If you’re ever down in the dumps, try sipping a gin and tonic flavored with lemon verbena leaves while squirting L’Occitane’s lemon verbena cologne all over your neck. You will drive almost all your troubles away.

Roasted Peppers with Lemon Verbena and Olive Oil

(Serves 4 or 5 as an antipasto dish)

6 bell peppers, a mix of red and yellow
1 large summer garlic clove, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
A pinch of sugar
Salt
Black pepper
The juice and zest from 1 lemon
6 large sprigs of lemon verbena, the leaves chopped
A handful of capers

Roast the peppers on an outdoor grill or under the broiler, turning them often until they’re charred all over. Peel and seed them, and cut them into strips. Place the peppers in a large serving bowl.

Mix all the remaining ingredients together in a small bowl, and pour the resulting mixture over the pepper. Mix everything well. Let the peppers sit, unrefrigerated, for about a half hour before serving, to develop good flavor. Serve at room temperature.

Grilled Chicken with Lemon Verbena, Green Olives, and Summer Garlic

(Serves 3 as a main course)

1 free-range chicken, cut into 8 pieces
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 large lemons
3 large summer garlic cloves
Salt
Black pepper
A handful of lemon verbena, the leaves lightly chopped, plus a few whole sprigs for garnish
A handful of green olives, unpitted

Place the chicken pieces in a shallow bowl, and drizzle on a tablespoon of olive oil and the juice from one of the lemons. Smash two of the garlic cloves, and add them to the bowl. Season with salt and black pepper, and give everything a toss. Let this sit for about a half hour.

Pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the juice of the other lemon into a small bowl. Mince the remaining garlic clove, and add it to the bowl. Season with salt and black pepper, and add the lemon verbena. Give it a good stir and let this sit, unrefrigerated.

Grill the chicken over moderate heat (either on an outside grill or on a stove-top grill pan), turning a few times, until it’s just tender, about 20 minutes (I usually remove the breast pieces a bit earlier). Place the chicken on a large platter, and scatter on the olives. Now spoon the verbena oil over everything. Garnish with lemon verbena sprigs. Serve hot.

Peaches with Lemon Verbena and White Wine

(Serves 4 or 5 as a dessert)

1 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, sliced open lengthwise
About 8 lemon verbena sprigs, the leaves chopped, plus a few whole sprigs for garnish
6 ripe summer peaches, unpeeled and cut into thick slices

Pour the wine into a small saucepan. Add the sugar and vanilla bean, and boil until reduced by about half. Add the lemon verbena. Chill.

Place the peach slices in a large bowl, and strain the syrup over them. Add the whole lemon verbena sprigs, and give everything a gentle toss. I love these peaches served over vanilla ice cream, but they’re wonderful on their own too.