Garlic Scapes

annie1992

11 years ago

yes, it's that time of year, the garlic is sending up scapes and they have to be removed to ensure proper growth of the bulb.

Out I went with my trusty scissors and cut these beauties:

I trimmed the tops, which can be a bit stringy, and tossed the rest into the food processor with enough olive oil moisten it. I plopped spoonfuls onto a foil lined baking sheet and into the freezer. Now I have a Lock N Lock box full of "garlic scape plops".

I made a white bean dip with scapes, which Elery said tasted very green, but good.

I also made a batch of homemade mayonnaise with garlic scapes, also very good, no pictures but I made a chicken sandwich with leftover chicken on homemade bread and that mayo. I put some in a batch of potato salad I made for Ashley's birthday BBQ too.

So, what else can I use a garlic scape "plop" for? No cheese or nuts in it, just scapes and olive oil. I suppose I could add cheese and nuts and make a pesto...

Annie

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Comments (17)

ynnej
11 years ago
I don't know- I've never tried them. But oh, man, have you made me want to!
jadeite
11 years ago
Annie,

Yes, make pesto! I made my first batch of garlic scape pesto last week. It is potent with garlic - I toned it down with some parsley and a little mint. I used Dorie Greenspan's recipe, with almonds and parmesan. So good!

Here is a link that might be useful: garlic scapes
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In 25 years of growing elephant garlic, I have never seen the flowers produce seeds, so I say ignore that comment - just won't happen. Although I cut and eat most of the scapes from my elephant garlic, I always leave a number of them because I like seeing the tall flowers around my garden. You definitely need to dig it up once leaves are yellowing (I usually let about half the plant yellow), and definitely dig from under the garlic to recover all the corms (hard cloves growing around the outside of each bulb) that you can for replanting. That is a really good way to significantly increase your stock of garlic, though it takes a couple of years before they make nice heads. I always store the garlic in a cool place (essentially in the house with AC) once it is dry and cured a bit, and I wait until the fall, mid-October here in Z7, to replant. The great thing about elephant garlic is that it lasts through the winter very well.
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hello Tim, if you haven't already found it, there's a thread about growing bulbils where I've included several links to informative blogs and various sites about growing garlic from bulbils. One of them mentions that they are no longer bothering to separate the umbels and planting the entire capsule. the resulting rounds are of a similar size to the separated ones. Your bulbils should remain viable until autumn, although some of the very smallest ones may dehydrate before then. If you can be bothered, plant the very smallest ones straight away and just use them as greens. Planatus, there are several good reasons for growing bulbils, it's an inexpensive way to dramatically increase your stock at a very low cost and the bulbs that were left to mature fully are still viable planting and/or eating stock so nothing is actually lost; subsequent bulbs will be fully acclimated to your environment and are often more vigourous and it is a safe way to swap garlic as you are reducing the risk of contaminating your garden with fungal diseases and/or nematodes etc. If they are grown in containers, the weeding is not such a problem although I grow the bulk of my bulbils in the open ground at a plot in a community garden. Here is a link that might be useful: bulbil thread
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I added 1/3 cup of sunflower seeds, and changed the way they said to blend it ( adding the olive oil last) - but this is the recipe i used. 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese or other sharp Italian cheese 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice, adjusted to taste 1/4 pound roughly chopped scapes 1/2 cup olive oil salt to taste Puree scapes, olive oil, and juice in a blender or food processor until nearly smooth. (You can make a smooth paste if you prefer, but most people like a little texture in the pesto.) Gently stir in the cheese or gingerly pulse the cheese into the mixture; take it easy as you mix in the cheese to avoid making the pesto gummy by overblending. Taste and then adjust juice and salt to taste. Store in the refrigerator to use within two or three days; freeze for longer storage.
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Annie -- the Pterodactyl story is just too funny. Would looooooooove to watch all the raptor going ons at your place. thunk -- a snowy owl????? Be still my heart, no lie. The fact that you saw Bald Eagles taking care of road kill is something I would enjoy watching more than 99.9% than whats on tv (and pretty much anywhere else) It's a bit of hazard driving with me if there are "flight" issues:) I ask my husband if he sees "that" and he'll say "Oh, that's a TV (short for Turkey Vulture)" and laugh, because he has no clue. I love turkeys 2Many! Don't you think it is utterly bizarre that they roost in trees HA! I've never seen them mating, but we did have a rogue guy who was going after people's wheels (image problems:) My husband wasn't going to move, and I'm like "are you're kidding me" and grabbed a coat from the back and began running at the turkey swinging it like a lasso :) not kidding -- not waiting for a turkey. Watched the vid of eaglets and could be such a HUGE TIME SUCK FOR ME! I love this stuff (we have some popular Peregrines in Pittsburgh) Utterly blows my mind how large the talons and beaks of the adult BEs are next to the eaglets. Would LOVE to watch them hunt! My goodness -- Smoky Mountains as backdrop -- spending ALL MY TIME OUTSIDE, 2Many. Not kidding. And you know what, I know people like your "acquaintance," which made me love your tomatoes even more HAHAHA! BTW, somehow I'm not surprised you have an artistic streak. That kind of stuff gives energy, doesn't it? CathyinSWPA
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annie1992
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks, jadeite, for that link. She was right on when she described the smell as a cross between garlic and grass. Elery called it "verdant" and it definitely is.

I think the author's husband had the right idea, just eat the stuff on good bread!

ynnej, check your local farmer's market, scapes have just become widely available the last couple of years and now they are very "fashionable", you can get them a lot more places than in the past. I think the garlic growers just recently realized that they had two cash crops with garlic, not just the bulb!

Annie
eileenlaunonen
11 years ago
Never seen these before...would lik to try them !
nancyofnc
11 years ago
Defrosted plops need toasted pine nuts and parmesan for pesto plops on crostini/stale toast. Or, make small potato latkes and use them for the base of an appetizer with the plops on top and a roasted cherry tomato plopped atop the plop. This is getting pretty silly......

Nancy
annie1992
Original Author
11 years ago
Boy oh boy, Nancy, we're just plopping all over the place here, aren't we? (grin)

I like the idea of the latkes too, yum. I love potatoes in all forms and now I'm thinking maybe garlic scape plops mixed with sour cream for a baked potato...

Eileen, try the farmer's market or any good market you have that sells fresh produce, it's scape season right now and that only happens once a year, they're very seasonal. They're also good grilled!

Annie
jadeite
11 years ago
Annie - I stopped at our local farmer's market and bought a huge bag of scapes. I had planned to do this, but your post made it a must. Your scapes look much fresher than the ones I bought. I think I'll have to try growing my own garlic later this year.

Cheryl
annie1992
Original Author
11 years ago
That's because my scapes had been cut about 5 minutes before that picture was taken, LOL, they were VERY fresh.

Here we plant garlic in October, it overwinters and then about late May or early June, sends up scapes. It's ready to dig in July or August. Because of that time frame I don't plant in my garden, it always gets plowed up in the spring somehow. I plant it right in the backyard, where I can keep track of it!

Enjoy the scapes, this is the first year I've frozen them, now I just have to remember to use them up.

Annie
KatieC
11 years ago
You have scapes already?? sighhhh.... I don't even have my beans in yet and the cole crops are still in the greenhouse. It was too cold to plant and now too wet to till. The garlic's loving it, but no sign of scapes yet.

Last year I made scape pesto with blanched almonds and froze it in little foodsaver bags. Yum.

Plops would be good in anything...
Lars
11 years ago
I like them cooked with potatoes, but the only garlic I have in my yard is society garlic, which Bernard planted for the flowers. The leaves are edible but do not have all that much flavor. Maybe I should plant some regular garlic - I have plenty of room for it!

Do you buy special garlic for planting, or can you use garlic from the grocery store?

Lars
lbpod
11 years ago
For scapes you need the 'hard neck' variety of garlic
for planting, as opposed to the 'soft neck'.
annie1992
Original Author
11 years ago
ibpod is right, hard neck garlic is the only type that sends up scapes, not the soft neck type. Since I never really know what it is in the grocery store, I buy my "seed" garlic cloves. There are about a zillion varieties available now, so you can plant an assortment of reds and purples and whites, whatever you like.

lars, I think garlic would do well in California, I know Gilroy grows it!

Annie
annie1992
Original Author
11 years ago
Oh, and katiec, it's been the hottest year I can remember here, it was in the 80s in April a couple of times, then frost, then 80s. It's hit the 90s already a few days and in the 90s this weekend again. It's wild, and the garden is loving it.

Sorry about your garlic scapes, go talk nice and maybe they'll hurry up!

Annie
dgkritch
11 years ago
Mine are ready too! I'm saving them for next week when my mom and daughter will be here. Planning on grilled salmon with lots of roasted veggies (scapes, peppers, onions, brussel sprouts, mushrooms, cauliflower) and good bread.

Yummy!

Deanna
triciae
11 years ago
Annie,

Your scapes look yummy. Alas, no scapes here 'cause I've got soft neck "Early Italian' planted. The weather here has been unusual also. My garlic is already mostly brown & is layed over. Normally, harvest would be mid-July. Do you think they could be ready this early?

Guess we should just dig a couple up to see what happening down there...

/tricia
sally2_gw
11 years ago
Mine have come and gone. I have some basically wild garlic that spreads and grows and produces interesting flowers, but never useable bulbs. I always knew I should cut those flowers off, but I've never done so. I'll do that next year and try the ideas y'all have suggested. If I remember. lol

Sally
KatieC
11 years ago
Lars, grocery stores carry softneck, which stores better but won't give you scapes. Let me know if you want to try growing some for scapes...I may have a couple of varieties that might do ok where you live.

Annie, I just planted beans today. Some of my garlic is thigh-high though...and no scapes. Strange year....

Garlic Scapes

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