Parsley Powder.....

Fresh parsley on the dehydrator.

It may sound like a potion from the Harry Potter movies, but instead it is something I discovered via The Victory Garden on PBS. In this episode, the chef displayed her finely ground parsley powder in test tube, which led me to exclaim: "parsley powder!?"

A little research on the net and I discovered that a growing trend had indeed escaped me. According to www.livestrong.com, parsley powder is .....

Rich in AntioxidantsParsley is loaded with vitamin A, beta carotene, vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and iron. Ground into a powder and made into a tea, it's easily assimilated by the body. These nutrients help fight free radicals, boost the immune system and nourish the organs. Beta carotene is good for the liver, lungs and colon.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/29095-parsley-powder-tea-health-benefits/#ixzz0y0OaJdx9

So now, of course, I had to try it.....

First off let me confess that I am less than enamored of dehydrating. I often find that the result is less spectacular than I expected and quite often I discover that no matter how long I let the damn thing run, I inevitably end up with stuff that is either not quite as dry as I think it should be, or, in the other extreme, a powdery dust.

Since I was going for a powdery dust and I had a plethora of parsley and a dehydrator, I set out on my quest to make parsley powder....

The internet seemed to be in a consensus that it would take 3 hours to dry parsley.

8 hours later, it was mostly dry.

Now, either it was my lack of patience or ...... my lack of patience, but I didn't end up with powder, instead, a typical assortment of dehydrated parsley leaves.

Dehydrated parsley.

Taking it one step further, I decided to try brewing a tea with my freshly dried parsley....

The Brew.

I added a little sugar and took my first sip of hot freshly brewed parsley tea....

.......and it tasted like a barnyard!

It was almost enough to stop me there, but I went ahead and iced it down and surprisingly it yielded a much more pleasing taste - like a lighter, less complex version of green tea.

Iced Parsley Tea

Although the picture doesn't show it real well - the color is actually a pale Mountain Dew yellow.

Not sure I'd make it again. But at least I have some nice dehydrated parsley flakes to add to .... whatever.... over the next several months.