Wild Ramp Pesto...

So, the other day I mentioned that one of the things I did with my bounty of ramps was make a pesto. It may not have been the most original idea out there, but since I’d never used ramps in that way before and since I’m a big lover of pesto I thought why not? Sounded like the perfect dish to me.

Initially I wasn’t sure if I should leave the ramps raw or cook them first. Amongst ramp pesto lovers there seems to be quite the divide. Some prefer raw, some prefer cooked. After tasting one ramp raw, I decided to go the ‘mostly’ cooked route. Ramps are very pungent, and while a few raw ones here and there probably taste great, I thought it would be a bit too over powering to have them all raw. So I decided to blanch 18 and leave 2 raw and honestly I think it worked out great. 2 raw ramps were enough to give the pesto that oomph without giving it any ugh factor. At least in my opinion, but if you like a little more pungency feel free to use more then 2 raw ramps. Use them however best suits your taste, but definitely use them, and definitely use them to make pesto, because this is without a doubt one of the best pesto’s I’ve ever eaten! And I’ve eaten a lot of pesto in my time.

Wild Ramp Pesto 

20 Ramps - 18 Blanched, 2 Raw
2 Garlic Cloves
2/3 C Walnuts
2/3-3/4 C Olive Oil
Dash of ground Thyme
Sea salt and Black Pepper to taste
½ Tbsp Dried Oregano
2-4 Tbsp Lemon Juice
½ bunch Parsley

- Fill a medium sized pot with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Trim the roots off the ramps and when the water is boiling add the 18 whole ramps into the water. Boil for 1-2 minutes until ramps are soft. Immediately drain, and then plunge into a bowl if ice water to stop them from cooking.

- Place the walnuts in a food processor and pulse until it resembles fine crumbs.

- Add olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and raw ramps to the processor, pulse until combined.

- Add the blanched ramps to the food processor along with the thyme, sea salt, black pepper, oregano and parsley. Pulse until creamy and smooth. Taste for flavor and adjust seasoning as needed.

- Enjoy over your favorite pasta. I used Gluten-Free Rice Spaghetti, and it tasted fabulous. It’s also great garnished with a handful of halved cherry or grape tomatoes!