June 7, 2020
Appreciation of Alliums
By Linda Dansbury

One of the (many) things I love about the farm is the constant supply of Alliums - that is garlics, onions, scallions, and leeks. It began with the first week and the fresh green garlic, which I am enjoying immensely! This week we will receive scallions, which is kind of my go-to for so many things, including salads of course.

We will be receiving garlic scapes for the next few weeks - they are the flower shoot of the garlic plant, and must be removed so the plant's energy goes into growth of the bulb, rather than into reproduction. What a benefit for us as it provides us with an additional product. Store these in plastic in the fridge and they will keep for a few weeks. As with the fresh garlic, it has a more mild flavor than garlic bulbs and is best used raw - if you do cook it, add it at the end so the flavor does not get cooked out. One of my favorites is Garlic Scapes and White Bean Dip.

Later, if all goes as planned, we will get fresh uncured mature garlic bulbs, then fresh onions, then storage onions, leeks, and cured garlic bulbs. A full season of these important seasonings from our farm!