garlic scapes

oh my. every food blog in the universe has done a post on garlic scapes this year. the it ingredient of 2009, it seems. at first, intrigued, i read with great interest, fascination, curiosity. after all, i love garlic. and people were raving about them, smart foodies everywhere. an underutilized product of the garlic plant.  of course they are not new and have always been around, as long as well, garlic. but after a time, i grew weary, tired of the hearing about the trend. (it was starting to seem like the fennel craze of the early 90s). until, of course, one day, in a whimsical mood, i spied them for sale at the organic stand at my town's farmers market. and so expensive. $10/pound. they looked so gorgeous all green and curled. tempting, very tempting. on an impulse i bought them. i figured i would figure out what to do with them later. why not find out what everyone was talking about?

well, once i got them home, i liked them even more. something appealed. i had read somewhere that they cooked up a little like asparagus. i thought they might go well with pasta. so i chopped them up with some cremini mushrooms i had on hand and seared them. then tossed them with the pasta, a few tablespooons of cream and some freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano. they really were delicious and despite their price, worth raving about. i loved them. so did both my kids and my husband. sharp and bitter raw. when sauteed, they sweeten and have a juicy delicious yet fresh tasting mild sort of crunch.

a fresh garden salad, and some farmers market sweet corn rounded out the meal. really nice. i should have known they'd be great. so i give you fair warning, you may love them too, if you don't already.