The Great Pesto Escape

If you'd asked me last Monday what a garlic scape was, I would have looked at you funny. But I feel like I'm becoming an early adopter of this culinary pleasure. Apparently, garlic scapes are the new hip thing in the foodie world. They are the flower bud of the garlic plant, cut from the plant in late spring to allow the garlic bulb to use all its energy to grow the yummy garlic we know and love. In the past, the scape had just gone into the compost heap, but some thrifty, adventurous cook decided to try it out the would be trash and it is now the sought after farmer's market item of the late spring. The mild fresh, garlicky flavor allows you to cook the scapes like a vegetable, rather than a seasoning as you would the bold, spicy flavors of mature garlic bulbs.

We received green garlic in our CSA batch last week, and there were small scapes on the plants. I also picked up some larger scapes at Findley Market. I had to restrain myself from buying more when I came across them while scoping out a location for my son's upcoming birthday party. In my Internet research for garlic scapes, pesto kept popping up. Being a great lover of pesto, I had to try this new pesto out.

I tried the recipe out for myself on Saturday, but this second try defiantly came out better. I served it over pasta, which we decided was slightly overcooked and grainy, I won't be using Kroger's Whole Wheat Pasta again. But the sauce was very flavorful and not too garlicky. It has more texture than Basil Pesto but a bit more kick. I'm told it freezes well so I might have to put some up. This is another great summer recipe since it only requires use of the stove to boil the pasta. I also love pesto because its a great pantry recipe. Whenever I have extra basil, asparagus or now garlic scapes on hand I use whatever nuts I have on hand and just throw it together for a quick meal. The scapes will only be popping up for another couple of weeks, so I'm gonna wear us out on them while they last.

Garlic Scape Pesto over whole wheat pasta





Makes about 1 cup

10 garlic scapes, finely chopped

1/3 to 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan (to taste and texture)

1/3 cup nuts (pine nuts, walnuts, pecans, almonds)

About 1/2 cup olive oil

salt to taste

Put the scapes, 1/3 cup of the cheese, almonds and half the olive oil in the bowl of a food processor. Whir to chop and blend all the ingredients and then add the remainder of the oil and, if you want, more cheese. If you like the texture, stop; if you'd like it a little thinner, add some more oil. Season with salt.

If you're not going to use the pesto immediately, press a piece of plastic against the surface to keep it from oxidizing. The pesto can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days or packed airtight and frozen for a couple of months.