July 25, 2012

Garlic Scape Pesto...it'll knock your socks off!

Garlic scapes!
I just love 'em!
What are they, you say??

Well, garlic scapes are the stalks of the hard neck variety garlic plant. 
They grow straight up and then form one or two loops.



After the stalk has formed one or two loops, you snip it off so the garlic bulbs will grow strong.
They are edible and when harvested young, 
they are tender and a lot more milder than the garlic cloves. 
They can be chopped up and  used in a stir fry or pesto...or really used any creative way you like in cooking.


Here's the pesto I made!



When I received garlic scapes in my CSA, 
I hadn't a clue what I was going to make with them. 
A little searching on the web....
and I was good to go!




This pesto is absolutely fantastic!!
Now,  let me tell you....this is for garlic lovers!  
This is some serious garlic intensity here people.
However, you can control the intensity by the amount you use on your pasta.
My hubs can't take a lot of garlic like I can,
and he totally loved it with the small amount I put on his serving of pasta.

This made a lot considering you only need about a Tbsp. per serving. 
I froze the rest in a couple of  ziploc bags. 
I scooped out heaping tablespoons, one at a time, and placed them in the ziplocs, just far enough away from each other so it will be easy for me to break them off to use as needed.
I also used a bit of this pesto in a recipe that called for chopped garlic. 
I just threw it in and it was fantastic!


Recipe:  Garlic Scape Pesto

approx.12 garlic scapes,  rough chopped
1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1/2  cup almonds
approx. 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Throw chopped garlic scapes, parmesan cheese and almonds into food processor. 
Grind almost to a puree while adding olive oil through the feed tube.
Adjust olive oil as needed for consistency and taste.
Add salt and pepper to taste.

9 comments:

  1. I can almost smell and taste it Bonnie, excellent pics. Looks so easy and yummy and perfect for this weather. But what's a garlic scape? can I substitute garlic cloves?

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  2. I've never heard of garlic scrape before, but I'd give this a go, your recipe looks deelish! Beautiful pictures too, by the way! Like you, I also like a lot of garlic, last week my friend and I had dinner at a new place in town that gives you a pesto-like spread to dip your bread in, and Bonnie, I'm not kidding, when we left the restaurant I'm pretty sure I had hair growing on my chest, that stuff was STRONG! I stunk for two days... TMI? Hahaha!

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  3. I've never heard of garlic scrape either. Do you have any information on it you can share with us?

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  4. Hey Suzanne, Lisa and Kathy!! Hi there! I knew I shoulda gave at least a brief description of what a garlic scape was...hahaha! I went back and wrote all about 'em at the beginning of my post...hope you guys come back and take a look at it!! I never knew what scapes were til about a year ago maybe...I saw them on the cover of a magazine or something like that. I have been seeing them turn up at our local farmer's market and I got a bunch 3 weeks in a row in my CSA farm fresh produce delivery. I love them now. Hope you guys try 'em some time! Thanks for inquiring!

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  5. Thanks, Bonnie. The description helped a lot. I'm going to look for them at our CSA.

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  6. Holy cow. .I grew garlic for the first time this summer. My friend that shared the cloves for seed, emailed me when she noted scapes on her plants. I nibbled one scape, and. .not sure what I would do with them anyway. .chunked them into the compost!! Yikes!! Next year I will be trying THIS!! I had no idea they were a delicacy! Good for you!!

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  7. Hey girl! I have been gone from blog land for a while and just now getting to catch up. You changed your design and I love it! So fresh and easy to read. Your photos are really good!
    This recipe for the pesto looks fantastic! I have been a pesto lover since way back. Your photo looks like I could stick a spoon in it! Ha ha! Thanks for sharing it! Now I need to back track and read all your post that I missed. I missed reading you blog. :)

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