Two Words : Garlic. Scapes.

A little departure from the norm today.  Please excuse me, but it's about to get all fan-geeky up in here.  I had heard of garlic scapes but never tried any until I found a bunch at my favorite grocery store.  They are beautiful.

 See?

 

 See?

 

 See?!

 

AUGH!  They're gorgeous!!

*swoon*

Flavor-wise, the stalks are similar to asparagus and the bud is a little like asparagus mixed with artichoke, though milder.  Raw, the stalks are hot and strong like garlic, but I think taste a little "grassier".  So far I haven't been able to retain the garlic flavor when cooked, but I'm still working on it.  We've had them steamed and grilled, and I think they'd be great broiled, too.

I paired the scapes with whole wheat pasta, but homemade herbed pasta would make these even better...I'm out of pasta flour... dang...

Garlic Scapes with Pasta
Serves 2

1/4 lb whole wheat pasta
1/2 lb garlic scapes
1/4 C chopped walnuts
crumbled feta cheese, for garnish
dash olive oil
s & p to taste

1) Make the pasta according to package directions.
2) Steam garlic tops as you would asparagus.  I use an electric steamer, so mine cooks in 8-10 min.
3) When scapes are done steaming, remove from steamer and chop stalks in 1/4 inch pieces, reserving the buds for later.
4) Plate the pasta and top it with chopped scapes, walnuts, olive oil, salt and pepper and feta, finishing with the buds.

Serve it with mixed green and herb salad with a basic vinegarette:
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Whisk ingredients together in a small bowl until combined, pour over salad to your taste.  I use 1/4 tsp or less.

Notes:

• Scapes steamed as long as asparagus works well to cook them, but I'm thinking I'll try a few less minutes next time.  (I'm going to try 5.)
• They cook really quickly on the grill don't take your eyes off them for a second!
• Mr. CotC doesn't like goat cheese, but I think you could easily substitute goat cheese for feta cheese.
• I think that mine were elephant garlic scapes.  What I have seen at farmer's markets are thinner and curlier, though I imagine they taste very much the same.  That said, I love the big, fat flower bud on these elephant garlic ones. 
• If you're brave, you might try a few thin sections of raw scapes in your salad, too.
• If you decide not to serve it with a salad with balsamic in it, you might put a little balsamic over the pasta to give it a little acid.

Next week, I'll be back to my regularly scheduled recipe box recipe, but I was so excited by these I couldn't help it.  Plus, this is the time to find them in the stores don't let these little buds of awesomeness get away!

OK.  One more:

 Sorry...