if you’re in new york right now, the hudson valley, your listening to the pitter patter or rain and enjoying this wonderful storm.
i just love rain, and especially the thunder. one of the things i enjoy most about living here is the thunder storms. it’s extraordinary. one of my favorites during the summer. even though it doesn’t last long it allows me to sit for a minute and reflect, listen, and just take it easy.
not only do i love the thunder storms in the hudson valley i also love my local farmers. but you now what i really love right now? the ramps. they are in season for another week or two. ramps are funny little things…you can only find them 5-6 weeks out of the year (usually just during the spring), which makes them kind of like a delicacy, well, to me anyway.
ramps…they look like a cross between a scallion and a leek, but the taste…the taste, oh the taste. onion like, but with a twist of garlic. strong.
most people don’t love them raw, especially if your sensitive to onions. you can grill them, braise them, pickle them…the list my friends goes on. they are the highlight of my spring. the milk to my coffee, the honey to my tea, the chocolate chips to my cookies…me and ramps, it’s a brief love affair. it’s a spring fling…
my favorite thing to do with ramps is bbq them. i love serving them with steak. toss them with a touch of olive oil, salt and pepper and you are set. this time around i tried something a touch different. i made pesto. pesto really leaves you open to tons of recipes. you can use it to stuff mushrooms, use it as a marinade for pork, chicken, steak…and then you can keep it traditional if you are a big onion fan and mix it with pasta or throw it over some tomatoes for a salad. this is one versatile veggie that can keep you busy experimenting for weeks!
happy monday!
ramp pesto chicken
- 15 ramps washed and cleaned
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbl orange zest
- 1 orange juiced
- 2 tbl olive oil
- 1 tsp salt (you can use more depending what you are using the pesto for, to cook chicken like i did above, i went with about double that)
- 1 tsp fresh cracked pepper
- 1 whole chicken
- take the ingredients above and process until you have reached your desired consistency.
- clean and prep your chicken, spoon pesto over and massage into bird.
- cook at 350 degrees for about an hour or until chicken is done.
this chicken can be eaten as is. serve it with potatoes or rice, or go crazy and serve it over a salad.
the best part, save the carcass, i did, and it made an awesome pot of stock the next day.
