Holy Mint Batman!

[Funmommy]

I'm being over run by Chocolate mint and I don't know what to do with it!
I'm dehydrating some of it but what else can I do with it?
I'm also looking for a good mint jelly recipe too. HELP!!!! :shout:

I wish I had known how invasive it was before I planted it where I did. :eek:

My poor flowers :fie: I wonder where they went? :rolleyes2:

[NCLee]

Start pulling it up!

I'm serious - mint is highly invasive.

There is a work-a-round - Plant some of your mint in a large flower pot. Then, plant the pot, so that the rim of the pot sticks up out of the ground about 2". That'll help keep the mint from spreading. You do have to keep an eye on it, so you can remove anything that escapes the pot.

This is an easy way to keep a selection of mints, in their separate pots, and not have everything taken over by mint.

Re: Mint Jelly Recipe. I don't know how well it'll work with chocolate mint though. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Mint-Jelly/Detail.aspx

Oh, BTW, when you pull out that mint, make sure it's dry (dew has evaporated). Knock off any soil clinging to the roots. Tie several sprigs together with cotton string at the root end. Hang up those sprigs in a warm, dry place and let them dry. When dry, put the sprigs in a paper bag. This will give you a lot of mint for future use.

Hope this helps.
Lee

[RobJob]

Yes, all you have to do is stick the root in the ground and stand back. A lot like kudzu but with a few good uses. I may be wrong but I don't think roaches and the like care to spend much time in a patch of mint. At least when you walk by and kick it it smells good. Put a crushed sprig in your iced tea. Mint julips, Bubba Gump's shrimp and mint?

[str8sh00ter]

You can always make homemade mint extract or liquer for flavoring. Just take fresh mint and pack as much as possible in a jar. Then pour some grain alcohol over it and let it sit in a cool area for a couple of months. You can then strain out the leaves and keep the flavored alcohol in a small jar for flavoring or what ever. Kind of like all of those flavored oils you see in fancy shops now. This saves a lot of storage space for a flavoring ingredient.

[mtwildflower]

You can always make homemade mint extract or liquer for flavoring. Just take fresh mint and pack as much as possible in a jar. Then pour some grain alcohol over it and let it sit in a cool area for a couple of months. You can then strain out the leaves and keep the flavored alcohol in a small jar for flavoring or what ever. Kind of like all of those flavored oils you see in fancy shops now. This saves a lot of storage space for a flavoring ingredient.

If you do this, you need a good quality alcohol. I tried to do it with cheap vodka and it was TERRIBLE. You really need to spring for the higher quality stuff.