Does Chocolate Basil Really Exist?

It's a real mystery!

I've been collecting Basil for a little over 2 years and have over 60 different varieties in my own personal collection. I have fallen in love with growing, caring for, and cooking with fresh Basil. I also love chocolate, so when I learned that there was a Chocolate Basil, I just had to have it in my collection. This should be easy...just go to a nursery and purchase. Not! No seeds are available online either.

So I started my search. I started researching Basil. At first I thought there were only 100 different varieties of Basil, but now I know that there are over 1,000! Scientifically there aren't over 1,000, but by the time, growers rename the Basil, and the different countries take ownership of the basil, you can see where 100 turns into over 1,000.

Each basil has it's own unique appearance, aroma, and taste. You can grow basil plants in your garden as a companion to tomato plants. It is said that the basil will enhance the tomato flavor, (makes sense, you use basil in homemade pasta sauces) and it will keep away some of the pests that will kill your tomato plant. You can use basil as a landscaping plant. Basil has beautiful delicate flowers, ranging from little white flowers, to purple flowers. Basil plants come in a variety of different styles too, some with big green shiny leaves, others with ruffled purple leaves. The lovable basil plants also come in different heights and shapes too.

Can you imagine cooking with Chocolate Basil, adding just a hint of chocolate flavor, without the sinful calories? Can you imagine walking by a whole row of Chocolate Basil planted in place of a flower garden and smelling a faint aroma of chocolate? Or can you imagine, soaking in a bubble bath with floating Chocolate Basil and relaxing to the soothing aroma of chocolate? I just have to find it!

The Internet is where you can find out almost any information. So surely I should be able to find information about Chocolate Basil.

I was almost convinced it is a myth that there is Chocolate Basil. Since basil is a relative of the Mint family I came to the conclusion that folks were mistaking Chocolate Mint for Chocolate Basil. I could understand that since I am also familiar with Chocolate Mint.

But then I skimmed over an article that was written in a large national newspaper where a lady grows Chocolate Basil! I tried to contact the lady, but without any success. I have had several people email me at my blog, telling me they heard that so and so told them where to get this Basil, and they even gave me the sources of where to purchase. When I called they were all out, but thought they had some last year. There are so many sightings of Chocolate Basil, but there are no pictures of it, and I wonder if there are any actual plants in existence.

So is there really a Chocolate Basil? My journey continues.

Ramona Werst will teach you to 'Love Your Basil' while she shares with you tips and secrets to Grow, Care For, and Cook With Fresh Basil. Make sure you download her free eBook 'Love Your Basil' at http://RamonasBasilGarden.com And become a Basil Fan at http://bit.ly/BasilFanPage.