flavors

Having herbs that are still kind of unfamiliar to me, I'm experimenting with the new tastes. I used nepitella and chervil in a frittata with leaf beet chard the other day. Next time I'll just use the chervil, and maybe savory or something else. Nepitella has more of a minty flavor than I expected- it was a bit odd in the frittata. I have put winter savory in eggs, in soup and in lentils. Pretty good all round. Discovered that tarragon and leeks makes a perfect combination in homemade chicken soup. And tonight for the first time I ate sorrel. Tossed some in a salad with garden lettuce, carrot and cheese cubes. Sorrel has a lemony zing to it. Sharp and tangy. Also found another use for lemon balm- I've read many places that a crushed handful rubbed on your skin will repel bugs. I was outside to mow the lawn, the gnats started to swarm my face, a mosquito whined near, and I was about to go inside for repellant when I remembered the lemon balm. I pinched off one sprig, broke the leaves a bit in my hand, rubbed it on my arms, neck and forehead. Guess what- the insects left me alone completely. It smells nice, too!