In the midst of quarantine life, something that none of us ever imagined; I have been cooking at home and creating a ton of delicious food. Even though today is a gray and rainy day, it is spring! Which means it is ramp season. Under normal circumstances, the farmers market outdoor season would’ve been running for weeks now. I am truly missing my Saturday morning stroll around the capitol to get the best of the season from local growers.
However, I am very thankful that one of my work colleagues invited me to his property to harvest ramps. It was my first time harvesting the spring little gems myself. My daughter and I carefully took matured bunches from a patch and moved to the next patch, making sure to preserve the future growth of such delicate gift from nature.
We came home with about 5 pounds of ramps! Sweet!!! The thing with ramps is that once they come out of the ground they won’t last long. I have been incorporating fresh ramps in literally every meal I cook. In order to preserve their delicious flavor for later use I normally make other products that can be refrigerated or frozen. You can find my ramp salsa verde or pickled ramps recipe here.
Another favorite way to preserve them is by making a compound butter. While you could use raw garlic to make all kinds of butter, I find the taste of raw ramps quite strong which is why I prefer to cook them to get all the garlicky-oniony flavor that develops in their natural sweetness under heat. It keeps in the refrigerator for weeks and in the freezer for months. You can add it on top of your favorite grilled meats all summer long, add a slab of ramp butter to your vegetables, or simply use it as the fat element to start or end any of your favorite sauces.
Ingredients:
- 2 dozen ramps
- 1 pound salted butter at room temperature*
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- Citrus zest (I used lemon & lime)
*I used salted butter because it’s all I had, however, you can use unsalted butter and adjust the salt level to your preference. If using salted butter you don’t need to add extra salt.
The butter must be at room temperature. You will need the butter to be soft to be manageable. Prep your ingredients. Separate the bottom of the ramps from the greens by cutting the white and purple parts. Chop the bottoms and slice the greens into thin strips. Keep separate as they will cook at different times. In a large skillet add 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the chopped ramps and cook over medium-low heat until softened. 7-10 minutes. Add lemon juice to the skillet and the greens. Cook stirring for about 3 minutes, until the juice has evaporated and the greens are wilted. Let it cool at room temperature. The mixture must not be hot when mixing with the butter.
In a large bowl add the remaining butter and using a rubber or wooden spatula mix well to obtain a pomade consistency. Fold in the citrus zest. Start adding cooking ramps by the spoonful, use the spatula to bring the ramps into the butter pomade by folding from the outer part of the bowl to the center. Continue adding and folding until all the ramp and butter is incorporated.
You can transfer the butter to a jar and keep it in the refrigerator. To freeze it I recommend wrapping it in a plastic film forming a log and tie the ends. I also use parchment paper on top of the plastic wrap and tie with kitchen twine although you could totally skip this step.
Ramp butter will keep in the refrigerator for a week or two and it will freeze for a longer period.
