What Rhymes with Thyme?

Ummm..... Delicious? Or maybe Lemon.

My husband and I recently put in a bunch of herb plants in the back yard. I never want to use them because they take so long to grow and you usually have to use so much. I don't want to hack my whole plant away, so I will wait for the right time to harvest them. 

Well that time came today! I figured since we have them, why not use them! It was a thyme sort of day. First I made iced tea with fresh Lemon Thyme and a splash of fresh lemon juice. Here is the recipe:

Lemon Thyme Iced Tea

2 large ice tea bags
3 sprigs lemon thyme
lemon slices
1/4 cup sugar

Directions:
Put tea bags, water, and lemon thyme sprigs into a pitcher. Set outside to in the sun to steep. Remove tea bags and dissolve the sugar. Add a touch of fresh lemon juice and maybe a slice or two to make it pretty. Refrigerate until cool.

I think this would be really good if you crush open the thyme leaves before you put them in.


Then, since I had this here lemon, I made Lemon Thyme Bars. Umm, Holy Moley. Fantastic. At first I thought it was too much thyme, but I followed the recipe and it ended up being great. What I found interesting is that without the sugary glaze on top, the shortbreaddy stuff on the bottom had a very interesting flavor. Not one I am sure I liked. However, pop that glaze on and it mellowed out the interesingness of it and the flavors blended into a heavenly delight. Thank you food network. Thank you.

 Here is the recipe for the bars.

Lemon Thyme Bars

Bars:

• 1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Glaze:

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Directions

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour an 8 by 8-inch glass baking dish.

For the bars:

In a small bowl combine flour, thyme and salt. Set aside. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together 1 stick of butter and powdered sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture. Using damp fingers, press the dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 30 minutes until golden. Cool for 30 minutes.

For the glaze:

In a medium bowl, whisk the lemon juice and powdered sugar together until smooth. Spoon the glaze over the cooled crust. Allow the glaze to harden, at room temperature, for at least 1 hour.

Using a metal spatula, remove the crust from the pan. Cut into 1 1/2-inch square bars and arrange on a serving platter or store airtight in a plastic container at room temperature.


That's all for Thyme day.

Make, Eat, Enjoy!