Cooking & Baking
Related: About this forumMy daughter got me some ramps!
When we lived in the country, ramps grew abundantly in the wooded valleys behind our house and we could harvest some every spring. We could dig a large number of plants in a short time. Back then, we dug the entire plant. Even then, I worried about depleting the growth, so we'd dig them from different parts of the valleys each year. I don't think any wildlife ate them. Many times, I'd see deer poop resting on leaves of the plants. We loved taking hikes in those woods. My husband's family was from WV. He had an aunt and uncle who would go into the eastern mountains every spring and get a supply of ramps. They were thrilled when se told them about the growth in our valleys and started coming over in the spring. They said they had never seen so many growing in one place. We'd have our family over for a ramp roast at least once in the spring. We shared the work of getting the ramps, cleaning them, making the food. The basic meal was raw-fried potatoes smothered with ramps, hamburgers on the plate, and soup beans, often horseradish. After we moved, we didn't get to have ramps very often.
I was thinking recently that I'd like to have some ramps. A few years ago, a guy was selling them in his front yard, so we stopped and got a bag. That was the last time I remember getting any. So it was a pleasant surprise when my daughter gave me a bag of fresh ramps yesterday. She said she got them at a local farmers' market.
I'm planning to have a small ramp dinner this evening. I'll chop and freeze the rest and add a little to flavor other food till I run out. I'm happy for the treat, happy for the memories
soothsayer
(38,601 posts)Enjoy!
Ha! Fixed typo
Duncanpup
(12,822 posts)MuseRider
(34,095 posts)but maybe not in a lot of areas. A lot of people talk of eating them with their morels. We DO have those but the temps this year are so low that I have only found 4 small yellows on the farm this year. I wish I could find some ramps. Enjoy them. This time of year I sure hear from a lot of people who find them and eat them happily.
Nothing better than taking hikes and scouting for actual pure, unprocessed food. Plants for me.
Warpy
(111,118 posts)Later on, I discovered they were edible but had to be approached with a certain amount of caution, they can be eye wateringly strong.
Ramps and potatoes were made for each other, IMO, ramps being strong enough not to get lost in potato blandness.
I haven't had them in decades, Boston was out of their range and it's too damned dry in NM.
Marthe48
(16,892 posts)I learned over time that a little goes a long way.
My Mom moved to SW Colorado and lived there many years. She loved ramps, but rarely visited us in the spring. One year, I packaged up some ramps and mailed them to her, hoping she'd at least get a taste. I didn't clean them, just wrapped the whole plants in plastic and hoped for the best. When she got them, they were pretty far gone, so she planted the roots and bulbs. She'd plant anything Mom got them to grow for several years. The chipmunks in her part of the country ate them, so after a few years, no more came up. After that little adventure, I made sure I'd freeze some for her to have when she did come home.
Saviolo
(3,278 posts)When my hubby still had his restaurant, he used to pickle them. We'd get a bunch from local foragers/farmers and then he'd pickle them and use them in anything from charcuterie boards to garnishes for our vegan Caesar.
Paper Roses
(7,471 posts)What type of food is this? Something like a dandelion In that food family?
MagickMuffin
(15,924 posts)There are people on Etsy that sells them. I've never heard of them before, but from what little research I did they were described as wild leeks.
I'd love to try them.
Marthe48
(16,892 posts)That's cool I hope you get to try them.