May 10, 2016

Wild Garlic

green garlic wild blog

The woods around our cottage are currently carpeted with constellations of wild garlic flowers, one of the best wild foods there is, and at this time of year you can find it in abundance if you know where to look. Should you chance upon a patch, pick a few huge handfuls of leaves and flowers, and take it home to make this... (but be quick, the season is almost over and in a week or so it will all be gone again until next year!)Wild Garlic PestoTo make a large jar:2 handfuls (about 100g) of wild garlic leaves with flowers200ml extra virgin olive oil, plus a bit more for sealing50g pine nuts or walnuts2 garlic cloves50g Parmesan cheese, gratedSalt and black pepperBlanch the wild garlic leaves in boiling water for about 10 seconds. Refresh in cold water and pat dry on kitchen paper.Put the wild garlic, olive oil, pine nuts or walnuts, together with the garlic cloves, into a food processor and blend to a puree. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the grated Parmesan. Season carefully and put into a sterilised jar.Pour over a little extra virgin olive oil to seal and cover tightly.You can also freeze this easily if you omit the garlic and add it later.This recipe is by Sarah Raven, and can also be found on her website www.sarahraven.com or on p95 of her Garden Cookbook