Rosemary (with recipe)

    In its natural Mediterranean habitat, this savory shrublike herb grows to heights of 6 feet. Its small pointed leaves yield a flavor that no cook should ignore. Rosemary is a natural companion to lamb, and sprigs can be inserted through slits into a roast or used in marinades. All other meats and fish accept rosemary’s flavor gladly, but use it with a sparing hand until you are familiar with its potency.

    Medicinally, rosemary has been appreciated for centuries as an antiseptic and was used as a strewing herb to scent and disinfect sick rooms. Rosemary tea is useful for nervous conditions, headaches, and digestion and is an effective mouthwash. It stimulates growth of hair when applied externally as a rinse, as well as when it is taken internally as tea. Rosemary oil is also good for the hair; it combats dandruff and makes hair more manageable and easier to comb.

    As you grind dried rosemary in your mortar or chop it fresh for Italian focaccia, you may recall (rosemary is for remembrance) that this herb is heavy with legends. It is said to have reached the height of Jesus Christ and at his death to have stopped growing upward and started spreading outward. The Virgin Mary purportedly threw her blue cloak over a rosemary bush, turning its white flowers to blue. The herb is said to stimulate bran activity and Greek students wore garlands of rosemary when going into examinations. It has long been a symbol of fidelity and in eighteenth-century England was carried in bouquets by brides and baked in wedding cakes. The smell of rosemary wood is said to preserve youth. The British claimed that the herb would not flourish unless the mistress became master of her household – sending wary husbands out in dark of night to uproot flourishing rosemary bushes!

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FOCACCIA

1 tablespoon dried yeast

1 cup lukewarm water

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons dried rosemary (or 1 ½ teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary)

7 tablespoons olive oil

1 ½ cups unbleached white flour

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon coarse salt (optional)

1.  Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water and let stand until it begins to foam (about 5 minutes). Add honey, salt, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Sift in half of the flour and stir well. On a floured board, knead in the remainder of the flour.

2.  Pour 2 tablespoons oil into a 9-by-13-inch pan or a 13-inch-diameter pizza pan. With floured fingers, press dough into pan in an even layer. Poke holes with fingers at random, every 2 inches or so, in dough. Pour remaining 4 tablespoons oil over dough and spread evenly with fingers. Sprinkle lightly with coarse salt if desired.

3.  Bake in a 400-degree oven for 25 minutes or until well browned. Cut in rectangles or pie-shaped pieces and serve warm with soup. Delicious, too, warmed over for a second using.

4.  Serves four to six.