Ramps ready for the kitchen
Three men on Dual Sport Motorcycles pull to the side of the remote WV dirt road. They dismount and extract small spades and zip-lock bags from the side cases of the bikes. After removing their helmets, they begin to look to the ground and are soon on their knees digging up small green plants. Wide grins break out on their faces as they start to harvest in earnest. Ramps, soon to be chopped and fried up with scrambled eggs –with a dash of hot sauce, make their camp breakfast complete.
7 hours away, by automobile, a prestigious and elegant dinner is being prepared for a Wall Street crowd that have gathered for a private event. The main course: Seared Salmon with Linguine and Ramp Pesto
This Perennial, shade loving plant, the Ramp (Allium Tricoccum), is found in woodlands of the Eastern United States, from Canada to the Carolinas, and west to Wisconsin, Missouri and Tennessee. From back wood hillbilly to the likes of Emeril and Julia Child, the Ramp has found its way into the kitchens of many homes and restaurants.
Shade loving Ramps!
Ramps have the characteristic taste of other alliums, such as onions or garlic, but with less of the strength…and less of the tears. The flavor is nice and rich, but doesn’t bite like raw garlic or onion.
Ramps are an important plant culturally in areas of West Virginia. Ramp festivals and roadside ramp stands abound in WV each spring.
High in Vitamin C, as well as flavor, Ramps can become a part of the spring harvest before most other plants. It is one of, if not the first green spotted in the woods as it breaks through the leaf bed to grab the early spring sunlight, peeking through in March. By Mid April the Ramp is mature and the leaves and roots become a tasty addition to the diet.
Salmon and Linguine With Ramp Pesto
Scrambled Eggs and Ramps
Ramps can be cultivated by the spreading of seed or planting of bulbs. After a planting or two they become self sustaining, propagation being from seed heads late August, early September.
For more information on growing and enjoying Ramps…I can recommend the following book: (Click on Link Below)
Having Your Ramps and Eating Them Too
Consider Ramps as a productive addition to your wooded area for a tasty and nutritious culinary use plant. For those preparedness minded readers….Ramps…which are great for those shaded and sloped areas of your retreat, can add flavor to a perhaps bland diet (great in bean dishes) and therefore boost morale.
