Q: What are those funny, curly things I find in my share in the spring??!?
A: Garlic tops! (also known as garlic scapes, tails, whistles, or trumpets). We plant our garlic in the Fall, and mulch it with straw. In the spring it grows tall, and sends up delicious, mildly garlic-tasting flower stalks. We cut the tender stalk off so the plant will put its energy into making a bigger garlic bulb. We harvest the garlic bulbs in the summer.
You can use garlic tops cut up raw in salads, stir fries, or anywhere you’d use cooked garlic (2 tops=1 big clove)
This simple and tasty garlic top pesto recipe comes from a Takoma Park farmers’ market customer:
1 bunch (about 10) Garlic Tops
An Equal volume raw peanuts
2-4 Tablespoons good olive oil
Sea Salt or tamari sauce to taste
Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender until finely chopped. Serve on crackers or with hot or cold pasta.
