spring Archives | The Good Hearted Woman

Garlic Spears are in season – get them before they disappear!

Garlic Spears – also known as “garlic scapes” – are the flower tops of the elephant garlic plant. They available for a few fleeting weeks in the spring and early summer at your grocery or local farmers market. They make a beautiful presentation and a tasty addition to your table.

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I have to admit that, until recently, garlic spears were new to me. How I missed out on them until then, I’ll never know, but before I even tasted them, I was hooked! In fact, when we brought this bunch home, I took ten times more pictures of them than I needed – look how beautiful they are!

Garlic spears can be eaten raw or cooked. When raw, they carry a pretty hot punch, and can be used to spice up things like baked potatoes or salads.

They can also be steamed, lightly sautéed, or roasted. Garlic spears have a very mild garlic flavor that mellows the longer they are cooked, and can be served alone, chopped into pasta or casseroles, or pureed into soup, sauce, pesto, or hummus.

We chose to keep things simple and oven-roast them, and the results were wonderful – far beyond expectation! I used this amazing Meyer lemon olive oil, which (while definitely not a requirement here) enhanced the flavors even more. The flavor was only the slightest bit garlicky: they tasted somewhat like asparagus, but closer to an artichoke. (I don’t like asparagus much, and I loved these, if that helps any.) Preparation could not be more easy!

Roasted Garlic Spears – Easy as 1-2-3!

1. Cut off the ends.

2. Toss in a little olive oil, salt and pepper and lay out in a single layer on a heavy baking sheet.

3. Roast in a 375° oven for 30-35 minutes, until the tips are lightly browned and the stalk is tender. Toss midway through roasting time if desired.

To serve, sprinkle with lemon juice.

Oven-Roasted Garlic Spears

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Vegan, Vegetarian

Author Renée B. ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Ingredients

Garlic Spears (i.e., garlic scapes)
Olive Oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
Fresh lemon Juice

Instructions

Cut off the ends of the garlic scapes.
Toss in a little olive oil, salt and pepper and lay out in a single layer on a heavy baking sheet.
Roast in a 375° oven for 30-35 minutes, until the tips are lightly browned and the stalk is tender. Toss midway through roasting time if desired.
Sprinkle with lemon juice before serving.

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Image courtesy of Gaelynn M. (My little sister!)

Last Wednesday my sister and I had the rare chance to spend the day together, and her only request was to go “somewhere pretty.” So I took her to one of the prettiest places I know of in the Portland area – the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Woodburn. This time of year, the tulip fields are a photographers dream – they are so full of vibrant color that images almost paint themselves into the camera.

Image courtesy of Gaelynn M.

The Tulip Festival, which began in 1985, is a tradition started by Ross and Dorothy Iverson, who raised their children on the 40-some acre family farm, and are passing the tradition onto them and their grandchildren.

The tulip fields are rotated each year with other crops, and this year they are planted a little farther out than recent years. It’s a bit of a walk, but it is definitely worth the effort. You also have the option of riding a shuttle out to the fields, or on a cow train or tulip cart, the latter being one of the numerous children’s attractions at the Festival.

I love how this filter highlights the contrast in the Leen Van Der Mark tulips so beautifully!

Does it bother anyone else that this bench is tilted ever so slightly as compared to the horizon?

Tulip stems can be purchased on the spot, or you can order bulbs from their extensive catalog to be shipped just in time for planting season. Mr. B and I did this a couple of years ago, and I remember being so excited when our bulbs arrived in the mail in the fall.

I fell in love with this tile piece, and I should have bought it, but I didn’t. However, {ahem…May birthday here} you have my permission to nudge Mr. B in this direction. I’m sure they would ship it!

The Tulip Festival has a wonderful gift shop full of all things Dutch and tulipy. Food and beverages can be purchased on-site at their Tulip Café, including sandwiches, sausages, burgers, fish, and chips, ice cream, elephant ears, kettle corn, espresso, beer and wine. Nearby in the Crafters marketplace, you can watch a wooden shoe-making demonstration, browse booths for crafts and art, and enjoy local food offerings.

The tulip farm’s collection of old farming equipment was pretty cool.

Image courtesy of Gaelynn M.

Walking through the fields got me to thinking about Hazel, an elderly woman I used to work for many, many years ago. Hazel and her husband, George ran a craft store – Hazel’s – in the center of town. Something of a local legend, Hazel was well known for surveying the store from her “perch” above on the mezzanine, from where she would offer her opinion, solicited or not, on just about everything to those below. I remember one time when she overheard a customer’s concerns that some colors Hazel had suggested for a project might clash.

“I want you to think about every flower you can think of,” Hazel said. “Can you remember ever thinking to yourself, ‘Hey those flowers there clash with those other ones?’” When the little woman shook her head, Hazel went on, “Well, there you go. Flowers never clash with one another. You never see anything in nature clashing.” Then Hazel stalked off shaking her head at the woman. She had no patience for people who would not heed her advice.

I never forgot that exchange, and it has influenced more than my art in the years since. Because Hazel was absolutely right, and here the tulip fields bear it out – bright pinks and deep purples grow right alongside vibrant oranges and sunny yellows, and together they create a captivatingly beautiful color palette.

Funny thing about Hazel: she was as endearing as she was opinionated, and the town is a little less colorful now that she is gone.

The Tulip Festival has something for everyone with a full calendar of events now through May 4th, and includes everything from photography classes to a chicken BBQ to an Easter Egg Hunt. If you live in the Portland area, take time to attend – you will come away with some beautiful memories.

Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival

33814 S. Meridian Rd., Woodburn, OR 97071
Festival & Gift Shop Hours: 9am – 6pm daily through May 4th
Admission: $5 bikes & motorcycles, $10 a carload, $20 buses
Season Pass: $40

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose – I paid my admission, walked through the fields, took some pictures and came home to share them with you. I received no compensation of any kind for this post.