Ramp Experiment

Well, hello there. It's been a while, hasn't it? I confess I've been cheating. I was seduced and did the only thing I could think of: I started another blog. A knitting blog, so that I can write about my two interests. But it's spring now, and hey, there's that market I'm always scouring, so I'm back again, and I hope that someone stuck with me during the long absence.

I've been waiting patiently, checking every few days, for the first crops to start arriving at the market. Sure, there have been apples, nice jams, and cider, but what I've really been wanting is the new green stuff of the season. After all, I've been reading about it all over the West Coast blogs. Wild, foraged ramps are one of the first things to arrive, and everyone knows it. About a week or so ago, I heard a woman asking the market manager very loudly, "Ramps. Does anyone have ramps yet?" He said that he didn't think so. But yesterday, I was reading on my friend Allergic Girl's blog that she had indeed spotted the thing that I had been waiting for, and she even suggested a nice way of preparing them. I dashed over there at lunch in hot pursuit to snag some of the dirty, stinky things.

They say that in Paris, it's illegal to bring Epoisses on the Metro, but here, perhaps I shouldn't have been allowed to bring ramps on the PATH train. I had already noticed by midafternoon, a wild, funky odor emanating from the ramps bag in my cubicle. By 5:45, when I got on the PATH to go home, I snagged a place to lean against near the door. To balance the bags I was carrying, I unwittingly shifted the ramps to my left hand, right at the nose level of the woman seated next to me. Not one minute later, she subtly placed her finger under her nose. I thought maybe it was me, but no--wait--I realized, almost laughing out loud, that it was the ramps. I quickly switched them to my right hand out of her line of scent, and she breathed much more easily the rest of the trip.

Then I walk in the door to my apartment. "What's that smell?" Pierre asks almost instantly. I laugh and tell him my story.

Anyway, the ramp lady at the Greenmarket suggested this preparation: saute the white parts of the ramps in olive oil, adding the greens only at the end to wilt like spinach. Toss with pasta, more olive oil, and a bit of butter (optional).

Here's what I came up with. It's not really even a recipe, and I shamelessly stole the idea from Allergic Girl.


Easy Ramps with Gluten-Free Spinach Pasta Recipe

Serves 2

1 small bunch ramps, about twenty
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional)
1 tablespoon olive oil for sauteeing, plus more extra virgin olive oil for drizzling later
8-10 oz. Tinkyada gluten-free brown rice and spinach pasta
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan or Romano cheese, for serving
Crushed red pepper, for serving


1. Put a pot of water to boil.
2. Clean the ramps thoroughly. Mine were caked in dirt. Separate the greens from the white parts, and chops the whites finely. Coarsely chop the greens into approximately 1" pieces, and set aside.
3. When water comes to the boil, add pasta.
4. Heat about 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium skillet and add the white parts of the ramps, sauteeting until translucent, about 5 minutes. At this point, add in the greens and continue sauteeing until the greens wilt, about 1-2 minutes more. Stir in the optional lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Drain pasta when al dente, and toss ramps with pasta, adding more olive oil to coat.
6. Check seasoning, and add more salt, if desired.
7. Serve with grated cheese and (optional) hot pepper flakes.

This was really, really, really good. I can't wait to have it again. What do the ramps taste like? I've heard them described as a combination of onions and strong garlic, and I think that's fairly accurate--with a little scallion thrown in.