Its Wild Garlic time again...............!

I've just become aware of a bumper crop of Wild Garlic appearing in my local parks! Good stuff, indeed!

Adding to my previous Wild Garlic Soup recipe - made with Potatoes, Onions, Wild Garlic and Veg/Chicken stock and a spot of cream - I would recommend the following:

1. Wilting a good few chopped handfuls of the stuff in a pan on low heat. Rinse well beforehand and leave moisture on.
Once wilted it can be used like spinach and added to any pasta, curry, soups etc. for extraflavour and colour.

2. Tom's famous Welsh Pesto (Westo).

Ingredients:

Lots of Wild Garlic leaves, washed and roughly chopped, including stalks.
Some Dry Roasted Peanuts (100g or so).
Some hard cheese - good Cheddar, Caerphilly, Double Gloucester (about 100g) Grated.
Juice of a lemon.
Some Sunflower/Olive oil.
Sea Salt and Black Pepper.

Add Nuts, Cheese & Lemon juice to liquidise and blitz until roughly ground.
Add Wild Garlic and blitz very briefly.
Add enough Oil to make a rough paste.
Add Salt and Pepper - bear in mind that more is better so that the pesto should have an intense flavour.
Add to cooked pasta and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

 

[miss-saxophone]

I've just become aware of a bumper crop of Wilgd Garlic

What's that then Tom? Wiggled garlic?

 

[Andrew Sanders]

Wilted wild garlic and watercress under fried Sea Bass. Tasty.
Will try the westo as soon as it stops raining. I smelled the garlic on the way home for the first time. Spooky.

 

[TomMapfumo]

Good thinking!

Could also be nice wilted on top of a buttered muffin under a slice of ham and topped with a poached egg and some lemon mayonnaise!

 

[Luluna]

Would be delicious to scoop up with some crusty bread. Yummmmy!

 

[TomMapfumo]

Would be delicious to scoop up with some crusty bread. Yummmmy!

I just finished doing the catering for my wife's 50th birthday party - with an Italian theme. The Wild Garlic Pesto on Bruschetta was
the most asked about, and several people arranged to meet up for a wild garlic hunt.................!

 

[MandyH]

several people arranged to meet up for a wild garlic hunt.................!

beats a wild goose chase any day. ))

I notice we have quite a lot of wild garlic near the shooting line..... :shocked:

 

[Taz]

I notice we have quite a lot of wild garlic near the shooting line..... :shocked:

That's 'cos no one is brave (or stupid) enough to go and pick it ))))))))))

 

[Luluna]

Tom, how nice of you to have a party for your wife's 50th. I hit the half century mark two weeks from tomorrow - I'm afraid it will be just another day. I'm told it only hurts a little.

 

[MandyH]

throw yourself a party Luluna.
When I turned 40, I was "single" (between partners, divorced, call it what you will) so no-one who cared enough to throw a party for me, so I threw my own.
To this day, it's still a great memory.
I might throw myself a 50th when the time comes, or maybe my husband and children will do that for me ))

 

[TomMapfumo]

It was a real family production - the 50th. I was in charge of starters and mains - included 5 gluten free dishes (Cassoulet, Ratatouille, Italian Lamb stew, Salad Nicoise and Mushroom and Goats cheese risotto My middle daughter did all puds & cakes. My eldest daughter did all music, and my youngest daughter looked after the other youngsters. Catering for 46 people is no joke, mind!

 

[Tenor Viol]

It was a real family production - the 50th. I was in charge of starters and mains - included 5 gluten free dishes (Cassoulet, Ratatouille, Italian Lamb stew, Salad Nicoise and Mushroom and Goats cheese risotto My middle daughter did all puds & cakes. My eldest daughter did all music, and my youngest daughter looked after the other youngsters. Catering for 46 people is no joke, mind!

Been there.... I foolishly offered to do a buffet lunch for a social get-together for some people I know.... ALWAYS ask for how many people - it was 36. I was in the kitchen for three days...

 

[kevgermany]

Did the same thing - cooked pasta for about 50 people. Did the pasta the night before in a big pot bought specially for the occasion. Came to add the sauce, and found that the pasta had turned into a congealed slimey mess that had to be chucked out. Cue rush to supermarket and a panic cook to get things ready on time.

 

[Jeanette]

Did the same thing - cooked pasta for about 50 people. Did the pasta the night before in a big pot bought specially for the occasion. Came to add the sauce, and found that the pasta had turned into a congealed slimey mess that had to be chucked out. Cue rush to supermarket and a panic cook to get things ready on time.

If cooking pasta to use next day slightly undercook it and refresh in cold water until it is cold, strain and stir and should be ok. Having said that I've not cooked such a large quantity in advance but should work.



Jx

 

[Jeanette]

and talking of wild garlic I remember a collegue whose husband used to own a classic car and hire it for weddings, she once put some very nnice flowres in the front only to have the father of the bride complain about the garlic smell.......she hadn't realised what it was!!

Jx

 

[kevgermany]

If cooking pasta to use next day slightly undercook it and refresh in cold water until it is cold, strain and stir and should be ok. Having said that I've not cooked such a large quantity in advance but should work.



Jx

Yes, thanks, it works - as long as the pasta isn't piled too high.

 

[BigMartin]

Had a very enjoyable party for my 50th. There are ways of simplifying the catering without spending a fortune. Part-baked baguettes, cheap sliced meats, cheeses olives etc from Lidl, spud salad...