I don't know if this would help you or not, but I always make chive butter and keep some in the freezer to have on hand for grilled cheese sandwiches, toast or pasta. That usually takes a lot of chives, since I'll make up a pound at a time. I have a butter dish I line with plastic wrap, fill it pretty full with softened butter and chives, then freeze. I've even given these away to interested friends, who seem to also like it. It's also really good if you add some Parmesan to the mix, and I always make sure I have plenty on hand before frost in the fall.

Claire, that's a really good idea. I have two kinds of chives coming up in my herb garden right now, left over from last year, so I've been watching this thread to see where it goes.

Annie

I have the same problem - a ton of chives, but I only use a small fraction of them. I usually mince and freeze fresh herbs in ice cube trays to use during the winter, but I never seen to get around to doing it with the chives. They're so easy and so prolific, however, I really don't feel like I'm wasting them. I mainly use mine when I make pasta salads. I should use them more often, especially in things that call for scallions when I don't have any on hand.

Mine badly need dividing tho!

Lisa

Just a little tip (don't ask me how I know) if you are using garlic chives. They work better in the spring than in the fall when they are MUCH too strong! I stick to onion chives when I'm making butter sticks to winter over until the spring crop.

I find it takes two sticks of butter (1 cup) to fill the lid of my butter dish twice. It's nice to pull it out of the freezer and let it thaw right on the covered dish.

(Thank you Annie. It's nice to think I actually have a good idea once in a while!)

I'm sorry, Correction! It takes three sticks of butter (1-1/2 sticks or 1-1/2 cups) to completely fill my antique butter dish (twice), since I fill the lid to the top. I have two of these, so I can keep a clean one, or one for sweet butter, and one with chive butter. If you have an old-fashioned butter dish, this might be helpful as a measure...

Claire, do you use the onion chives or the garlic chives in the butter? I have both, and am thinking maybe just a stick of each kind. I'll bet it would be yummy on fresh, hot biscuits or on roasted potatoes...

Annie

I have my chives planted at the end of a downspout to slow the water down - they have survived about 6 years now! I will have to make the butter - thanks for the recipe.

What a great idea! Sometimes the simplest, most practical ideas are the most elusive.

I've been on GW for quite a while, but never visited this forum. I'm very impressed so far! Thanks!
Maureen

My chives are almost ready to flower. I like to cut them back and snip into 1/2 inch pieces and keep them in a peanut butter jar in the freezer. I just keep adding them to the same jar. They are so good all year long in many recipes. Spring is the perfect time to divide a clump into several and either, give away or transplant. They do like to be divided every few years.

Claire, that's a great way to preserve chives. I'm
going to try it with both the reg chives and the garlic chives.
I usually just snip them and put in freezer bags, plain.

Nancy

Annie and Nancy, I use both onion and garlic chives in the spring, but only the onion chives in the fall. I tend to add a LOT of chives to my butter, so the garlic chives are of course ''to taste'', which is too much taste the way I do it, for some people I know.

Magothyrivergirl, I like the idea of planting them at the end of the downspout to slow the water down. That's a great idea; Thanks!

Don't forget, you can eat the flowers, too! Onion chives flowers taste just like the leaves, only more so; and Garlic chives flowers taste like the leaves, only more so.

Chives recipes at Fooddownunder:

http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=chives

When freezing chives, snip them into a plastic bag, then when you have a nice pile, flatten it like a pancake. Cover the 'pancake' with plastic, and make another pile, and flatten it. Make as many 'pancakes' as you like. Freeze. With the thin 'pancakes' you can just snap off a piece with as many chives snippings as you need. I've done this with other herbs as well. No need for hammer and chisel, or for defrosting. Once frozen, you can transfer the 'pancakes' to a suitable container if desired.

Cut open some baked jacket potatoes, pile in some sour cream and sprinkle chopped chives over the top.

Add some chopped chives to diced hot beetroot.

Add some chopped chives, thyme and parsley to some fried mushrooms.

Add chopped chives wherever you would normally use onions, for a milder flavour. They go well in quiches, potato salads, scones, dips and omelettes.

Pickle chive bulbs in white wine vinegar and serve with cold meats.

Sprinkle chives over servings of soup as a garnish - particularly good with tomato soup, or potato and leek soup, or even pumpkin soup. Pretty well any soup, really.

Mixed with cream cheese, sour cream, cottage cheese or butter, chopped chives are delicious with potatoes. I always add some to a potato salad.

Added to a white sauce, chives are great served on vegetables and corned beef.

Chive Pikelets
1/2 cup self raising flour
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped chives
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup milk

Sift the flour into a small bowl, add the chives and mix well. Make a well in the centre and add the beaten egg yolk and enough milk to make a smooth, creamy batter of the consistency of thick cream. For a more tender pikelet, leave to stand for 15 minutes. Lightly grease a nonstick frypan, drop in teaspoons of the batter. When bubbles appear on the surface, turn them over and brown the other side. Delicious served with smoked salmon or other pate.

Cheese and Chive Muffins
335g self raising flour
1 1/2 tablespoons castor sugar
50g b butter, chopped
60g grated Parmesan cheese
3 teaspoons dry mustard
1/4 cup fresh chives, snipped
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese, extra

Grease a muffin pan. Combine flour and sugar, rub in butter. Mix in cheese, mustard, chives, egg and milk. Spoon into prepared pan, sprinkle with extra cheese. Bake at 190°C for 20 minutes, turn onto a wire rack.

Here is a link that might be useful: google search for chives recipes

My chives are OOC.....I wonder if there is a variety that does more shoots and less purple flower.
Linda C

My chives are all wild. Onion chives although I do have some garlic chives too. They are all through the grass and the first thing that sprouts up in the spring. They've been going for quite some time and none have flowered yet, so perhaps a bit more wild chive types. The new mown grass with all the chives is one of my favorite smells when I cut the grass for the first time.

That is one herb that I have year around and multiplies like crazy. I add chives to everything that you would add onions. I like it in tuna or egg salad. I love scrambled eggs with chives and cream cheese. I just learned you could eat the flowers. Suppose to look nice in a salad.
Clare

Clare, I agree with you...they do look nice in a salad. I'll never forget Martha basting her barbecued meat with a bundle of chive flowers as her ''brush''. Oh my...

I bet a cream of chive soup would be excellent!

I have a backyard full of wild chives too, Elery's dog likes to pee on them, maybe because of the smell, LOL. He never goes near the "tame" ones I have in the herb garden.

Come to think of it, he is always trying to "water" my rosemary bush too. I give him all kind of heck for that, but he still tries. Maybe it IS the smell....

Anyway, I don't use the wild ones because they are very, very strong compared to the ones I planted.

Annie