Kat of All Trades

I’m kind of in love with garlic scapes. They remind me of some weird vine out of a horror novel – think The Ruins – and I think they’re really tasty. I usually chop them up and use them in dishes in lieu of garlic cloves…until now. Because last week, Madura Farms Mycomedicinals, the mushroom purveyor at my local greenmarket, was giving away a shopping bag full of scapes to every customer. How could I pass that up?

The same Saturday that I came into my scape bounty, I had the pleasure of meeting Jennifer of In Jennie’s Kitchen. I like her approach to food – how could I not, with her passion for Italian cuisine? – and she’s wonderful to chat with in real life! At any rate, I was browsing around her website for recipes, and I came across her garlic scape pesto. That fit my qualifications: Uses lots of scapes at once? Check. Freezer-friendly? Check.

Of course, at the same time I was readying myself to make the pesto, my oregano was flowering like crazy. By crazy, I mean that there were flowers and buds on about half the plant. I like oregano, and I can take a hint.

I used Jennifer’s recipe as a jumping-off point and added some other flavors I enjoy. I used it on roasted chicken – I’ll tell you about that soon – and I always love pesto on pasta and bread. I think I need to go home and make some more.

Garlic Scape and Oregano Pesto (adapted from Jennifer Perillo)
Makes one cup.

12 garlic scapes
1/3 c almonds
1/2 c grated Romano cheese
1/4 c oregano
4 basil leaves
1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp salt
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/4 c + 1 tbsp olive oil

Add the scapes, almonds, cheese, oregano, basil to a food processor, and pulse until they are finely chopped.

Add the butter, salt, and lemon juice, and pulse until the ingredients begin to blend.

Begin adding the olive oil one tbsp at a time, until you reach desired consistency.

Eat on everything.