June 17, 2018
Interchangeable Alliums/Scapes
By Linda Dansbury

Garlic and onions are the most common members of a large plant genus called allium (in the Amaryllidaceae family). The goal of Anchor Run is to provide its members with some type of allium each week of the season - a task that takes a lot of planning and expertise. A typical allium season for us looks something like this:

Weeks 1-2: chives and green garlic; weeks 3-6: garlic scapes; weeks 6-14: scallions; weeks 9-12: fresh garlic; weeks 11-14 fresh onions; weeks 14-26: semi-cured onions; weeks 17-26: leeks; weeks 16-26: cured garlic. Cured garlic doesn't require refrigeration but we recommend refrigerating everything else. Cured onions on the farm are passively cured in the field then put right into cold storage.

Why do I put you through all this reading? If a recipe calls for onions and you only have scallions, don't worry about it - use the scallions - just don't cook them for long or you will lose the flavor. I made a recipe calling for leeks this past week and I used my scallions and a bit of green garlic I still had. The same with garlic - don't run out and buy garlic - instead, use the scapes, just account for the fact that scapes will lose their flavor when cooked for long.

If you are a new member of the farm, you may be wondering how to use the garlic scapes. First of all, they store for at least 2-3 weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. They can be used in place of garlic in most recipes, with the exception of long cooking ones like soups and stews - their flavor will be cooked out. I love using them raw in things like guacamole, bruschetta and salad dressings. I use them in stir fries, but add them at the end with the greens. On this site we have a few recipes for them including Garlic Scapes and White Bean Dip and Garlic Scape Pesto (yes, almost anything can be made into pesto). After receiving scapes for all these years, I learned a new way with scapes this year - grilling them! As I described recently in grilling the heads of romaine lettuce, do not walk away! Method is simple - place scapes in a bowl and drizzle a bit of olive oil over. Add a bit of salt and mix well. Place scapes on medium heat on grill for about a minute. Turn over and cook for another minute. That's it! They taste nutty and slightly garlic-y. Even better, grill along with scallions, then eat as a side dish or chop up and add to salads and/or sauteed snow peas. So, so tasty!!