Spring Ramp Risotto

 There's nothing like a warming bowl of risotto to warm your cockles in the depths of winter.

There's also nothing like that same bowl of risotto to comfort you during the damp days of spring. Fortunately, there's also little better than a big bowl of creamy rice teeming with the allium-scented perfume of fresh spring ramps.

If you've made risotto before, you'll find that this recipe isn't fancy or fussy. But, the flavor is plenty complex, and it harbors a deceptive richness that's brightened by the pop of a bit of lemon zest.

Perfect served alongside a slice of grilled fish, this risotto captures spring in a dish.

The bulbs of the ramps are sauteed to soften their slight bite and assist in infusing the rice with flavor. The ramp leaves are saved and added just before the end of cooking for an additional burst of flavor. The brightness of lemon zest pulls everything together.

You'll need a nice big handful of ramps, a bit of lemon (Meyer lemons are really nice for this recipe), some good quality Parmesan cheese, a cup or two of arborio rice, and a quart of vegetable stock.

That's it -- 30 minutes, and dinner is pretty much on the table.

The sum of this recipe is definitely far greater than its parts. In fact, the biggest investment you'll make is that of your time standing over the stove to stir it.

Bright. Savory. Earthy. Green.
It's the perfect side dish for roasted chicken, salmon -- or even on its own.

Spring Ramp Risotto


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Pacific Salmon with Wild Ramp Pesto

Spring has finally sprung here in southeastern Wisconsin. We've had gorgeously mild weather for the past few days, and it's given me a craving for deliciously fresh spring fare.

Seasonal local produce is still somewhat scarce. But, there are a few delicacies available to satiate my cravings. One is the delicious spring ramp. 

Resembling scallions, ramps begin at their base as lovely white bulbs whose gorgeous reddish-purple stalks rise upward into a plume of elegantly silky green leaves. With a mild flavor poised deliciously between that of leeks and garlic, they make a delicious addition to pasta dishes and pestos. And they marry particularly well with farm fresh spring eggs.

Many supermarkets carry ramps when in season. However, they can also be foraged*. We were lucky to have a friend who shared his favorite foraging spot with us this year, so we were able to head out today to pick up a few handfuls of this favorite spring delicacy.

The question, once we got them home was, of course, what to make?

Why, a simple pan seared salmon recipe, of course.
This uber-easy recipe makes full use of the flavor of the mild tops of spring ramps, in full complement to the rich, silky flavor of seasonal salmon.

Best thing is, there's very little effort involved. You just need a few simple ingredients, a food processor, and a nice heavy cast iron skillet for cooking your salmon.

If you've never seared salmon in cast iron before, you're in for a treat. It's quick, easy, and delicious.

Heat your cast iron skillet over medium heat until it's so hot it's almost beginning to smoke (5-7 minutes). Add a tablespoon or two of butter, and allow it to melt, covering the entire cooking surface. Place salmon filets in the pan and allow to cook for 2-3 minutes or until the filet begins to brown. Flip the filet, cover the skillet, and continue cooking for an additional 2-3 minutes -- or until the dark/under cooked middle portion of the filet comprises slightly less than a quarter of the total filet thickness.

Top salmon with ramp pesto before serving.

Spring Ramp Pesto

For those of you who love ramps as much as we do, stay tuned. We'll have a couple more recipe ideas for you coming up!

NOTE: *If you are lucky enough to know of a place to forage for wild ramps,take care to keep sustainability in mind. Harvest only from large, healthy beds and take, at most, a fraction of what is there (no more than 5-10% of a bed). Concern about over-harvesting has everything to do with the fact that wild ramps do not seed themselves; once you pick a ramp it does not grow back. And over-harvesting can easily decimate a ramp population. 

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Seared Scallops with Creamy Spring Ramps

For me, spring is truly marked by the arrival of certain spring vegetables -- asparagus, morel mushrooms, fiddleheads... and, of course, the ubiquitous ramp.

Ramps (Allium trioccum), often called wild leeks or wild garlic, are a member of the lily family -- which also includes garlic, leeks, and onions. Resembling scallions, ramps begin at their base as lovely white bulbs whose gorgeous reddish-purple stalks rise upward into a plume of elegantly silky green leaves.  With a mild flavor poised deliciously between that of leeks and garlic, they make a delicious addition to pasta dishes and pestos. And they marry particularly well with farm fresh spring eggs.

But, they're also fantastic when featured on their own -- which is how we decided to showcase these lovely locally grown spring vegetables for the Virtual Vegetable of the Month Club challenge, hosted by our friends over at  innBrooklyn (If you haven't taken the opportunity to check out their blog, you really must. It's positively gorgeous! And a good read, to boot!).  

Having been inspired by a gorgeous posting on The Sprouted Kitchen for Scallops on Creamy Leeks, we decided to take Sara's concept in a new direction by simplifying it a bit, and using ramps in place of the leeks.

Since the delicately flavored leaves of the wild leek cook much faster than the bulbs and stems, we chopped each separately.  First, we sauteed the bulbs and stems gently in a few tablespoons of butter.

And then, when the stems were quite tender (10-15 minutes), we added the ramp leaves, along with about 1/4 cup of heavy cream.  We turned the heat to medium low and allowed the cream to bubble gently while we prepared the scallops.

We purchased 10 gorgeous dry packed sea scallops from the lovely Colleen who was working the fish counter at our local Whole Foods (we may joke about "Whole Foods" being synonymous for "whole paycheck" in our house... but the truth is, they have some of the best and most sustainable fresh seafood for purchase in the city of Milwaukee).  Dry packed scallops are particularly good for searing, since they are free of sodium tripolyphosphate (STP), a chemical additive added to many scallops to reduce the natural loss of moisture after harvest. STP can affect the flavor of the scallop, and it also increases their moisture content -- which hinders browning.

We dredged the scallops lightly in a mixture of white whole wheat flour and salt (not necessary, but a step that adds a delicious crust to the final product), and then set them to cook in a pan of hot bacon fat.  This is the point in the story when Peef begins to swoon, and it's no wonder.  You can just imagine the sweet, smoky odor that infused our kitchen as the scallops were cooking...

By the time the scallops were cooked (about 3 minute per side did the trick nicely), the ramps were tender and the cream had reduced slightly.  So, we spooned the wilted ramps onto warmed plates, topped them with the scallops, and sprinkled everything with a bit of chopped fresh tarragon from the garden.

We ate in near silence -- paying homage to the amazingly complimentary flavors on our plates. The ramps were sweet, fragrant, and slightly earthy -- with a green, almost forest-like flavor that belies their "wild" nature. The sweet licorice flavor of the tarragon played nicely off of both the ramps and the scallops -- whose crisp browned crust gave way to succulent, briny, perfectly cooked meat.

In less than 40 minutes, dinner was served. And it was Spring Heaven. On a plate.
Or, as Peef would say, "This is the best use of tarragon. Ever."  And I'd have to agree.

Seared Sea Scallops with Creamy Spring Ramps

Inspired? Well, why not try your own hand at something equally delicious? And you have at least two more days to submit your own spring garlic recipes to the Veg of the Month Club!  We'll see you there!


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