By Nathaniel Miller

The Marietta Times

nmiller@mariettatimes.com

Looking for a way to spice up your weekend? The Castle in Marietta is hosting its annual Herb Day Luncheon Saturday, and with a menu chock full of dishes prepared with local herbs and spices, the results are sure to be both informative and tasty.

The event has been held in the early spring for the past 17 years, and will be at The Castle on 418 Fourth St. Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“This is a great way to celebrate spring in the area,” said Kyle Yoho, education director at The Castle. “Everyone always loves the food and this year we get to learn more about the herbs used in the meals, as well as their history.”

The luncheon has two seatings of 22 tickets each. The first seating is already booked, but spots are open for the second seating at 1 p.m. Yoho said that those tickets won’t last long though, so residents should make their reservations soon.

“The Herb Day Luncheon is one of our most popular events each spring and it almost always sells out,” said Yoho.

A presentation entitled “Herbs: Facts and Folklore” will be presented by Castle board member Jann Adams at 12:20 p.m. on Saturday. Adams said the presentation focuses on herbs and their uses throughout history, but pays special attention to the Capsicum or peppers, the International Herb Association’s 2016 Herb of the Year.

“I recently became involved in the Master Gardener program, so my presentation is fact-based, but does include anecdotes and folklore about the plants,” said Adams. “Capsicum is a great herb to focus on this year because it has been shown to have a number of medicinal and health purposes.”

Capsicum is a genus of plants from the nightshade family (Solanaceae) native to the Americas, and includes common foods such as chili pepper, red and green peppers, and even sweet peppers. The most common form in the U.S. is the bell pepper.

Yoho said the luncheon will feature dishes prepared with a variety of the herbs from Adams’ presentation, including paprika, roasted red peppers and bell peppers. The meal will be accompanied by a walk-through of the Castle’s herb garden.

“We will serve three courses, each featuring dishes that include herbs we will see that day,” said Yoho. “We begin with a roasted red pepper tomato soup and bell pepper salad, move on to a second course of a variety of sandwich choices and then finish with a peppered cheesecake dessert with strawberry topping.”

Organizers of the event said the luncheon remains an area favorite because of the pairing of history and culture.

“One of the main goals is to promote The Castle, of course,” said Adams. “But this event in particular shows that history is not only a part of the past, but is fully alive in the present as well.”