Given I have test kitchen in the name and food is my passion, I have decided to use my camera phone to capture images that inspire my cooking. Besides my life is way more about food than iphone apps and mobile news.

So here is my basil plant:

If you have never grown an herb, try basil. Its hardy, lasts forever and adds tons of flavor. You don’t need tons of space either. It’s a great container herb plant.

Here are some simple ways to use basil (10 minute recipes) to add flavor and pop to dishes (most serve 4):

• Salad dressing: Handful of basil , 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp balsamic, salt and pepper to taste
• Curry Basil Chicken salad: 4 Leftover Grilled Chicken Breasts Diced, 2 Handfuls of Basil, 1 tbsp Mayo, 1 tsp curry, 1 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp lemon/or vinegar, 1 tsp salt. Mix the wet ingredients and pour over Chopped Chicken and basil. For an extra taste sensation, try diced mango or apples. Yum! You can serve over greens to add bulk and nutrition.
• Homemade Basil pesto: 3 Handfuls of basil, 1 garlic clove, 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 tsp salt . Through in the grinder and toss with pasta (make sure the pasta is hot when you toss so it coats nicely)
• Roasted Basil chicken: Stuff the chicken with basil leaves and 2 or 3 garlic cloves. Mix 1 tbsp of paprika, 1 tbsp of garlic powder, 1 tsp of salt and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Pour the mix on the chicken for a yummy roasted chicken.

To get you motivated, check out these great resources:

• The top fifteen remedial uses of basil offered up by @lifemojo. From Anti-aging to stress relief, basil does you some good.
• The how to grow basil video from @eHow. All you need is a container and some sun, you can do it!
• 800+ basil recipe collection on @allrecipesnews. Plenty of easy and tasty ways to use basil. I like the new pro iphone app that offers up a lot help in the kitchen for $2.99 .

So let the Basil magic happen!

Do you grow basil? What’s your favorite use of basil?

Popularity: 2% [?]