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I love the flavor of rosemary but I don't like its prickliness. It's worse dried, but I don't even like that particular quality in fresh rosemary. I'm experimenting with a yeast bread that will include both water and fat (in this case, bacon fat). I want distinct pieces of rosemary (although they can be small), so I don't want to grind the rosemary. I also want to avoid a green tinge in the bread itself. I'm thinking of manually crushing the rosemary into a couple of tablespoons of water and bringing the mixture to a boil in the microwave, letting it cool, straining and adding the rosemary to the bacon fat and giving it a quick saute. I guess I'd add the rosemary water to the water in the recipe if it isn't too green. Does that sound like it would work? I want the flavor, but no sharp edges.

Edit...Hmmm, I've reached the point in the experiment that the crushed rosemary and water have been in the microwave and cooled. At first I was optimistic, the texture seems like what I am going for. However, the flavor is strong - even bitter.

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I would suggest heating some fresh rosemary in the bacon fat. Then discard the rosemary. You will get the flavor without the part you don't want.

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    Would that work as well with dried?
    – Jolenealaska ♦
    Commented Oct 12, 2013 at 13:59
  • sure, though I suspect you would get a slightly different flavor profile. Try both see which you prefer. To me, fresh is much more aromatic.
    – moscafj
    Commented Oct 13, 2013 at 12:30
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My solution would be a bit more long-term, which would be to put some rosemary sprigs in olive oil and let it infuse for a few weeks. I have a bottle of rosemary, sage, and garlic oil which I use in breads and it works extremely well.

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    Just FYI, your answer was downvoted for a while. I suspect it might have had something to do with your "garlic oil" which if made by infusion like your rosemary oil has been discussed here at length. Garlic oil by infusion has been shown by a preponderance of evidence to be very unsafe, even under refrigeration. One of Many Examples
    – Jolenealaska ♦
    Commented Oct 13, 2013 at 0:16
  • Haha. The 'garlic in oil might kill you' strikes again. If there is one thing I have learnt from this site is that botchulinen is found on raw garlic and that it breeds in an anaerobic environment. Ergo garlic in oil is dangerous.
    – Sam Holder
    Commented Oct 13, 2013 at 17:37
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As it turns out, I went forward with the experiment as I laid out in the question. Yes, it seemed a bit too strong as I added the rehydrated rosemary to the bacon fat, but in the final product it turned out exactly as I hoped it would. My bread contains onions sauteed in bacon fat, the rosemary sauteed with the onions, and crispy pieces of bacon. This one will stay in my "forever" file. I can see the bits of rosemary, I can taste them, but I can't feel them. The water I used to rehydrate the rosemary seemed too green, so I discarded that.

I am reminded how much I do like the flavor of rosemary, so next time I shop I will get some fresh to infuse. With an infused olive oil I'll probably use the flavor more often. Also the saute of the rosemary definitely helped to bring out yet mellow the flavor.

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