Category: Garlic, Green

This is a lovely spring soup that you can adapt to use whatever alliums you have--green garlic, new garlic, garlic scapes, spring onions, scallions, leeks. I do not typically blend this soup but I'm sure it would be good that way too, a riff on potato leek soup. ... Read more »

If you have good stock on hand use it for this simple dish. And if you don't, still make it but don't be shy with the butter or olive oil to finish. The greens need to be quick-cooking and more tender than kale typically is, for this to come together well. The goal is to get a silky, moist dish but not a soupy one.   Here I served it over red lentils that I cooked with a few pinches of cumin seeds and finished with salt and olive oil.   Variations A good stock can be made from chicken, mushroom, veg, pork, or beef. You can also use broth or water for the base liquid in this recipe. Spinach, young, tender collard greens, beet greens or turnip greens are good here. ... Read more »

This comes together quickly and is good with any very tender green. You can also use substitute other kinds of noodles. The miso here is key and gives the dish its complexity. You can add tofu, or chicken or toasted nuts to make it a meal-in-one.   Variations Delicious choices for tender greens include mustard greens, beet greens, or quelites (aka lambs quarters or pigweed). ... Read more »

Use regular broccoli if you don't have purple sprouting broccoli--a delicious early spring, overwintered broccoli with tender leaves and stems.  In the Pacific Northwest green garlic--immature stalks of garlic--are often harvested at the same time as the overwintered broccoli so this is a lovely combination but regular garlic will work just fine!... Read more »

There is a fairly short season for green garlic (immature garlic) in the spring here in the Pacific Northwest. It is particularly delicious with eggs and cheese. If you don't have green garlic you can still make a delicious cauliflower frittata with a bit of regular garlic. Leftovers make a wonderful sandwich filling with a bit of arugula or parsley and good bread. [caption id="attachment_13089" align="aligncenter" width="660"] Leftover frittata makes an excellent sandwich filling[/caption]... Read more »

If you have home cooked or canned chickpeas on hand, this comes together very quickly. The sauce is versatile and keeps for a week so make plenty to use in other ways. Use other tender greens like mustard or turnips greens or even mizuna or tatsoi if you don't have spinach.   You can scale this up but don't skimp on the greens. You want plenty per serving and they cook down so much.  ... Read more »

Green garlic is often one of the first signs of spring in farmers' markets in the Northwest. Green garlic is simply the immature stalk of garlic before the cloves really start to form. It looks a bit like a skinny leek or green onion and you can use the whole thing when they're quite young. As the stalks get a little thicker and tiny cloves start to form you can peel off the outer layer or two but still use the stalk as well.   The whole stalk is fragrant, mild and sweet and can be used anywhere garlic is called for but in greater quantity, if you'd like. It's delicious in soups and salads and added to dips and dressings. Unlike mature garlic, green garlic needs to be refrigerated in a plastic bag and used within a week to 10 days. ... Read more »

Nettles are earthy and grassy tasting and do quite well in pesto form. A little splash of lemon juice or vinegar brightens the pesto up nicely.  You can spread the pesto on toast, stir it into eggs or add it to a frittata or dress cooked grains or beans with it.... Read more »

This soup is superb with a good homemade chicken stock as well as with vegetable stock/bouillon or just water. The former is richer and silky but the other two are deliciously bright and just a bit lighter. The version above is made with chicken stock and included a handful or two of macaroni. You can omit the noodles or substitute a few diced salad turnips or new potatoes for added heft. ... Read more »

This dish is very similar to this one but this is the early spring version and both of course beg to be adapted to your likes and pantry offerings. Frikeh is scorched green wheat. It is smoky, chewy and absolutely delicious. You can substitute mature, regular wheat berries or barley or faro for the frikeh. ... Read more »

This pesto came about much in the same way this radish top version did. I use a combination of blanched greens and fresh herbs to make a quick pesto-like sauce. In this case I dressed spaghetti with it and it had a nice kick from red pepper flakes and did include a little cheese, which the radish top version does not.   Use whatever combination of greens and tender, leafy herbs (not sage or rosemary) and see what you get. I particularly like adding sorrel to this for its nice tart flavor. This is a wonderful way to work through a lot of leafy greens that, in the case of radish tops, don't tend to keep very well.   You can spread this pesto on salmon, toss it with warm lentils or beans, stir some into eggs, spread on a sandwich mixed with mayo or goat cheese (or as is), or garnish a soup with it, etc.  Or you can toss it with pasta, as I've done here for an ultra quick meal.   The pesto will keep for about 3 days in the fridge.... Read more »

I make aioli starting in the spring when asparagus and snap peas show up. I love dipping blanched vegetables in it and making egg salad with aioli or spreading it thickly on toast and topping with whatever else I have on hand, until the tomatoes arrive and then it's tomatoes and cucumbers . . . and then green beans and artichokes get dipped. I sometimes plenty of basil or chives or parsley and tarragon. I thin it out to make salad dressings, top halves of hard-boiled eggs with it for a fake deviled egg. It's also perfect on a simply cooked piece of fish, chicken or any meat.  ... Read more »

  What to do with basil before the tomatoes are ripe? This salad, for one thing. I was in a hurry when I made this and really wanted to add toasted sunflower seeds but had none toasted. I’ve always toasted them in the oven but didn’t have enough time to do so. I toasted them in my cast iron skillet with just a little olive oil and salt. I had the heat on pretty high and they almost got too dark but I caught them, tossed them around a bit and reduced the temperature and toasted a bit more—in total probably just for about 5 minutes. They were smoky and delicious.   Serves 4  ... Read more »

I love the ratio of greens to rice in this dish. It is light, fresh and lovely and you can substitute with other greens (fava tops, chard, lots of parsley and/or cilantro). It really doesn’t take too much time and is so worth the bit of effort of stirring and adding broth occasionally for 20 minutes.   If you’re using pea shoots, taste the stems and tendrils raw. They should be tender and delicious raw as well. If you find tough fibrous parts, trim those off. And chop the spinach and pea shoots quite finely, into 1-2-inch pieces. The greens blend with the rice more easily when the pieces aren’t too big. ... Read more »

  I have many versions of homemade mayonnaise and aioli on this site. This one came about one spring to use up a half bunch of dill that was about to go south. I used it as a dip for fat spears of steamed asparagus one day and spread it on sandwiches the next and dressed arugula with it the third. It's delicious with tarragon, parsley, basil or other tender herbs.... Read more »

Beans, greens and garlic (and possibly pork) is a heavenly combination. You can use home-cooked or canned beans. I typically have beans cooked with this method on hand or in the freezer, however, sometimes I use the slow, oven method that requires no soaking just about 1 1/2-2 hours, unattended in the oven in a covered pot. It works beautifully so if you have the time by all means try this method.  ... Read more »

[caption id="attachment_13598" align="aligncenter" width="660"] This version included lots of garlic scapes and fava beans but no peas. It's a good template to use what you have.[/caption] This is a classic Italian preparation for a variety of spring/early summer vegetables and here's a version with peas and pea shoots. You can toss it with pasta or gnocchi, topped with some aged pecorino or Parmesan or enjoy as a side with fish or meat or egg dishes. ... Read more »

Italians make many versions of this simple dish. It is suited to spring time and the tender green (and sometimes leafy) produce that starts showing up in the markets.   The veggies, in typical Italian style, are not left al dente (like pasta is) but are cooked through and sometimes even mashed up a bit to really blend the flavors. You can finish with fresh herbs, a squeeze of lemon juice or simply with salt, pepper and a little more olive oil.  Serve alongside fish, or top it with a fried or poached egg or toss it with pasta or just with some crusty bread and cheese for a light dinner.... Read more »

This is quite a simple but elegant side dish. This would be a lovely side to any kind of meat or fish. I served it as a side to a bean dish topped with a poached egg for a catered dinner once and this got the most compliments. Also lovely with pasta. Sometimes I add leeks as well, which is a very nice addition.... Read more »

This is one of my quickest, go-to dinners for a busy day. The options are literally infinite as to what to include. In this version green garlic and fava greens are the core, with a bit of feta. You could substitute turnip greens for the fava greens as well. This is wonderful the next day in sandwiches or as a snack. It’s just as good at room temperature as it is cold or warm. To make this a bit heartier, you could add potatoes cut into small dice that you cook with the green garlic.... Read more »