Garlic Scapes

I had never tried a garlic scape, but I'd heard tales of their goodness, and had been looking forward to this first reward in our garlic-growing adventure.  Last week, these shoots (scapes) began to emerge from the garlic stalks.  They need to be snipped, I'm told, or they will flower, draining energy from the bulbs, and resulting in a smaller harvest.

Recipes for garlic scape pesto are ubiquitous via Google, but I wanted to try something to preserve the scapes, rather than pureeing them unrecognizable.  Raw, they have the texture of a fresh green bean, and have a strong onion/garlic flavor.  Cooked, they soften and sweeten.

I chopped four of them up and sauteed them in some olive oil while a pot of water was boiling for spaghetti.  I added some salt and pepper, but otherwise kept it simple, tossing the spaghetti with the scapes, parmesan, and some pine nuts. 

Delicious.  We have 12 more scapes to use, so I will try a couple more ways to prepare them and report back.  If you have the opportunity to pick some up at a farmer's market, I recommend the adventure.  Or, make plans to plant in the Fall so you can grow your own garlic next year.  In another month or so when the leaves start to yellow, we'll pull the garlic stalks and let the bulbs cure in the sun for a few weeks.  We haven't even seen these bulbs yet, but so far, I give garlic growing two enthusiastic thumbs up!