Now that Spring is upon us it's time to start sniffing out the wild garlic in the woods and on the forest floors. Wild garlic thrives in shady, damp conditions and has a much milder taste than the traditional bulb garlic we are used to. If you are new to foraging this is a great place to start, as the green pointed leaves and white flowers make it easy to spot - if you're unsure use your nose, the fresh garlicky scent is unmistakeable.
Like all varieties of garlic, it also has many health benefits.
So what can you do with it?
Our favourite recipe is a super simple pesto to stir into a pine nut pasta salad, or to drizzle over a fresh stonebaked pizza.
Ingredients:
150g wild garlic leaves
50g parmesan
1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
50g walnuts, toasted (you can use other nuts depending on preference)
150ml organic olive oil
Step One:
Rinse and roughly chop the wild garlic leaves.
Step Two:
Blitz the wild garlic leaves, parmesan, lemon zest and walnuts to a rough paste in a food processor. Season and with the motor running slowly add almost all of the organic olive oil. Taste, season and add a few squeezes of lemon juice.
Step Three:
Transfer the pesto into a clean jar and top with the remaining oil. This will stay fresh in the fridge for two weeks.