Fresh Mint: Garden to Table Recipes
A simple guide to growing mint, plus delicious recipe ideas for using this fresh herb all season long. You’ll love these mint drinks, desserts and more!
Do you plant a garden? We have a small backyard, but I always make room for growing fresh mint, basil, rosemary, oregano and other delicious herbs every spring. They’re the perfect way to add refreshing flavour to recipes all season long.
Growing and Caring for Mint
If you’re new to gardening and don’t know where to start, mint is definitely one of the easiest herbs to grow. In fact, it’s a bit like a weed, so most find it foolproof.
Given its voracious nature, it is usually best to keep mint plants in separate containers from other herbs. You don’t want them choking others out.
As far as growing conditions go, mint varieties differ slightly, but most prefer full sun and moist, fertile soil. I usually don’t find it necessary to fertilize my mint plans. Use organic with a light application if necessary.
Commonly Grown Varieties of Mint
- spearmint
- peppermint
- mint chocolate
- licorice mint
- lemon balm
- curly mint
My favourite variety to grow is spearmint for its aromatic and flavourful leaves. It’s the most popular form of mint for recipes. Peppermint is a good option for making tea and desserts.
To harvest, use snips or simply pinch off just above a lower set of leaves to keep the plant healthy. It’s best to remove leaves from the plant often to keep them young and tender.
Fresh Mint Recipes
Although I primarily grow mint to add to our fresh brewed iced tea, I often use it in salads, cocktails and smoothies. Fresh mint is soothing to the tummy and calming, so I use it every opportunity I can.
To give you ideas on what to do with fresh mint leaves, I’m sharing some of my recipes, plus those I plan on trying over the summer. They all look so delicious. Enjoy!
Strawberry & Mint Infused Water by Back to Her Roots
Kale Tabbouleh with Cucumber & Mint by Simple Bites
Pea, Mint & Feta Fritters by Gourmande in the Kitchen
Detoxifying Watermelon Mint Limeade by Justine Celina
Sugar Free Mint Jelly by Larder Love
Strawberry Mint Salad with Hazelnuts & Ricotta by The Macadames
Cantaloupe & Mint Caprese Salad by Foodie Crush
Fresh Spearmint Ice Cream by Cookie and Kate
Blueberry & Mint Gin Fizz by One Tough Cookie
Be sure to pin this guide to growing and using mint for later!
Have any favourite recipes that use fresh mint? Be sure to leave a comment!
Ready to grow your own mint or other herbs? Check out more ideas for creating a container herb garden.
And, finally, find out how easy it is to dry mint to use in recipes all year long!
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Thanks for stopping by!
Thank you so much for including my Detoxifying Watermelon Mint Limeade in this lovely roundup, Shauna! Fantastic tips and mouth-watering recipes. I hope your summer is off to a great start1