|the easiest thing you'll ever make| cilantro oil...

The title doesn't lie. This MIGHT be the easiest thing you'll ever make.

The other day Sprouts was having a sale on organic fresh cilantro. SCORE! We love cilantro. So I headed to said store and bought a few bunches! At $.75 a pop I was in organic herbie heaven. (Yes I have tried to grow my own....it was (sadly) a no go....)

There were a few things I had in my mind to make- so this was the best timing!

Problem: I bought waaaay too much. I mean, these "bunches" were huge! Honestly, the biggest bunches of cilantro I'd ever seen. Thanks Sprouts! Didn't stop me from getting a million though. Ok, maybe 2 or 3. So I made a few recipes, we ate some of it up...but come a few days later the remaining cilantro I had washed and stored was beginning to wilt and look oh so sad!

Confession- I HATE HATE HATE (like with a massive burning passion inside my soul) wasting food. If anything ever reaches it's "throwing away" point, I seriously mourn over it. Not. Even. Lying. Haha.

I digress. So! Not wanting to see my beloved fresh herbs end their delicious life in a trashcan, I quickly whipped up a batch of what I think is the easiest thing one will ever make- cilantro "oil".

Not only does this prolong your fresh herb's life, BUUUUUuuuuUUUUUUT it also creates a super flavorful, unprocessed, and oh so yummy natural ingredient you can keep in the fridge and add to many recipes! Think of it as a Super Duper Flavor Booster-er.

There are no measurements!                                          GASP!

Stay with me. You can't mess this up. I promise.

Basically you'll take the amount of fresh herb you have remaining (doesn't have to be cilantro!- basil, tarragon, dill...) and blend it to oblivion with as much good quality olive oil that you need to create a loose, viscous paste. You're going for a "on the thicker side of things" vinaigrette consistency. Try to stay from too many stems.

That's it.

For my "oil" I had about a cup of fresh cilantro leaves left over. I added it to my food processor and drizzled in about 1/3-1/2 cup of organic extra virgin olive oil while the processor was running. After about 20 seconds everything started spinning around nicely and it eventually became a nice, loose, herbie goodness.

Then just pour into an air tight container (I used a mason jar) and store in the fridge. Will last another 5 days there!

What the heck do I do with it??

• Use as a marinade for fish, meat, poultry, tofu or veggies! Just spoon some on desired food, rub in, and allow to marinate 2 hours- or even overnight!
• Mix in chopped garlic, an acid of some sort (lemon or lime juice, vinegar, etc), salt + pepper to taste and spread on meat or veggies before grilling!
• Make a pot of brown rice and stir in a few spoonfuls once rice is completely cooked!
• Stir into soups for a flavor boost!
• Mix into cubed, boiled, and drained potatoes for a delicious potato salad OR mix into freshly roasted potatoes! 
• Shoot, for that matter, mix into mashed potatoes (or mashed cauliflower) for a punch!

As for us, I simply rubbed some of my cilantro "oil" over a cut up organic chicken, drizzled some lemon juice over the whole thing, and sprinkled some sea salt and pepper last minute. Then, I baked uncovered for 40 minutes and viola! 

Have fun with it!

PS- If you haven't already- find and follow us on BlogLovin!