Step 1

Begin by harvesting your fresh basil. Homesteading Hack: The best time to harvest fresh basil from your garden is in the morning. Harvesting in the morning will give you the sweetest leaves.

Step 2

Make sure your basil is clean. If needed, wash it with cool water and lay it flat on a baking sheet covered with a paper towel to dry. Dry basil leaves completely before proceeding.

Step 3

While drying, you can label your bags for the freezer. I like to write the date I am freezing them and the kind of herb it is. It’s a lot easier to write on them when they are empty. Tear the basil by hand into chunks. Use the leaves, soft stems (remove the larger woody stems), and put it in the blender. Homesteading Hack: Did you know that the stem tastes like basil too? Don’t worry about getting all the leaves from the stems. As a great time-saving technique, you can blend it all. I like just to remove any stem ends that seem overly thick. Don’t worry about packing it down into the blender. Just leave it loose.

Step 4

Add your olive oil (or other liquid). There is no exact measurement for this. You simply want the mixture to have enough olive oil to blend into a smooth, thick puree. Start with a little and add more as needed. You really can’t get this wrong. You want it to be mostly basil with just enough oil to blend. This way, you will have that strong, concentrated basil flavor. Remove the basil from the container by pouring the basil puree directly into your ice cube trays, and use a spoon or spatula to smooth and level the top.

Step 5

Put the ice cube trays into the freezer and leave until solid. Depending on your freezer, it should take between 12-24 hours.

Step 6

Once frozen solid, remove your basil cubes from the ice cube tray and put them in your pre-labeled freezer bags. Place the bags back into your freezer for use all winter.