This year I decided to skip the CSA and explore some different Farmer's Markets in the areas I work and live. Plus, Mom and Dad have planted wonderful veggies this year so I'll reap the benefits of their garden too. Last weekend I found garlic scapes. I thought they were snake beans which I had seen in the Asian Market or maybe some type of super scallions. The woman at the farm stand said you can use them just like the bulbs, so I bought a bunch!
Recently I've chopped them into vinaigrette for salads, sauteed them with mushrooms and roasted them with green and wax beans. In each method of preparation they're delicious! Raw they have a bite so you know it's garlic, but it's a much earthier, grassier flavor than the bulb. When sauteed or roasted they become caramelized, sweet and crunchy. This article about garlic scapes is great and I'll be trying the recipe as soon as I get a hold of another bunch tomorrow! The roasted beans, from Mom and Dad's garden, came out pretty tasty though:
Wash the beans and snap off the plant end--I used about 3 handfuls of beans. Dry them and place them in a medium bowl. Drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Chop 2 garlic scapes and toss them in with your beans. Set the toaster oven on broil and let it heat up a bit. (I use the toaster oven more frequently in the summer if I can. It's 90 degrees and we live on the top floor of a condo building. Saves on sweat and energy!)
Roast the beans until they become soft and brown in spots. Sprinkle with sliced almonds and return to the toaster oven until the nuts begin to brown. Remove the beans and use a microplane to zest a tablespoon of lemon on top and give the dish a squeeze of lemon juice. Toss and serve!
The photo's blurry, it's not your eyes. I'll do better next time; I guess I was hungry. |
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