Made this a while back. Omitted the peas for fresh spinach as I don't like the extra sweetness apart from the carrots. And used whole pork belly chopped and rendered instead of the pancetta. Dash of smoked paprika built up the flavor for the belly whilst not changing the color of the dish much. I suppose you could use steamed asparagus, chopped, or fiddleheads. Maybe even young ramps. Maybe a shaving or two of lemon rind for a citrus aroma and flavor. Possibly some finely chopped up lemon basil at the end to amp up the lemony flavor and take the edge off the richness of the cream.
That's the thing, I personally don't like salty sweet flavor combinations. Honestly, I'm trying to figure out what cold weather food to make tomorrow since I usually cook on Sundays. Cold, windy and rainy outside for days.
What a great description, I can never get enough ramps in the spring. I dry the tops to use as seasoning the rest of the year unfortunately they are all over with here now, bummer.
If your butcher doesn't have a flank steak, you need a new butcher! That's a really common cut, even though some places don't carry them often. If you have a Sam's Club nearby you can get a good deal on them (as well as other meats and fish!). Just remember to never cook it past medium, on a grill, and to always cut it on a bias. It's a pretty forgiving cut, otherwise. If you don't want to try making the Ras el Hanout, you can do as I do and order it from Amazon. I like the mix from Zamouri Spices, (as well as many of their other Middle Eastern spices). They have two sizes, 2 and 4 oz.
It does look very similar but if you look at the flowers of Ramsons and WV leaks/ramps they are different. If it follows all other flowering plants things then it is probably different but I am only amateur.
No. They're in the same genus, but they're wildly different in looks and flavor. I've had both.
No. Garlic scapes are the tender soft shoot portion of a traditional garlic. They're nigh impossible to find here unless you head to a farmer's market. If you drive around NorCal farms, you'll see the garlic fields from the highway and if you have a window rolled down you can smell it in the air. I imagine the tender shoots are cut up by field workers and sold to restaurants by the farms' owners. I've seen scapes mentioned more on menus in NorCal than I have down here.
Interesting use. I dry whole celery stalks in our Excalibur and grind it up into a fine powder. We have a few blade grinders that are perfect for this sort of thing. It's perfect for mushrooms, too. I simply salt pack them whole and they last for years. Grind one or two up and add it to a soup or stew base to amp up the flavor.
