Garlic Scape Soup with Fresh Spinach
If you are wondering what to do with those lovely loopy green stalks with the elegant bud and taper on the tip, here is one solution. This is a bright green soup with lots of flavour and nutrients.
Ingredients:
- Butter or extra-virgin olive oil - 2 tbsp
- Fresh Garlic Scapes - 2 doz, flower buds discarded & green shoots chopped
- Potatoes - 3 lrg russet, unpeeled and cut into 1/2
- Vegetable/Chicken stock or Water - 5 Cups
- Spinach Leaves - 2 lrg handfuls, stemmed
- Lemon - 1 whole, juice
- Fine-grain sea salt - to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper - to taste
- Heavy Cream (optional) - 1/4 cup
- Chive blossoms (optional) - for garnish
Instructions:
Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, then add the scapes and saute' for 2 minutes. Add the potatoes, stock, and add salt so potatoes absorb flavor, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through and beginning to break down.
Remove from the heat, add the spinach, and puree using a hand blender. (If you must use a conventional blender, be careful; the hot liquid can burst out the top and make a huge, potentially painful mess. Try leaving the lid slightly ajar to allow steam to escape. Cover the top with a kitchen towel and blend in batches at low speed.) Season with the lemon juice, salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Whisk in the cream for a silkier texture. If the soup tastes flat, add salt a few big pinches at a time until flavors really pop.
Serve garnished with the chive blossoms.
Another delicious recipe from the kitchen of The Garlic Box
