As May turns the corner to June and we finally get some rain to break the drought–a little too much, though–produce abundance is ramping up. Some of the first basil has been spotted along with short-season cherries and garlic scapes. Not too much longer we’ll have summer squash and zucchini growing out our ears! Plus, Biltmore Park Farmers Market will reopen next week beginning Thursday, June 4, from 3 to 6 p.m. with vendors like Barnhouse Kitchen, Sunny Hill Harvest, J4 Cattle Co., and Bright Branch Farms.
Garlic is one of the most hopeful things you can cultivate. Planted in the fall, garlic spends its whole winter quietly underground growing its root system before bursting to life above ground in the spring. This time of year, green garlic is ready and the garlic scapes rise to the sun. Before garlic is dug up and cured, hardneck varieties send up a curly scape in attempts to form a flower and make seeds. These scapes are snapped off the plant so the garlic can focus its energy on building a bigger bulb–this also marks about a month until garlic can be harvested for curing. Both garlic scapes and green garlic can be used in recipes that call for garlic cloves. Garlic scapes are similar to asparagus in texture but have a mild garlicky flavor. Make a garlic scape pesto, roast them like asparagus, add them to savory scones, incorporate them into a pasta dish, or puree them into a hummus. Garlic scapes are easy to preserve too—if you want to savor their flavor for later, quick pickle them, lacto-ferment them, or dry them to blend into a powder for a green scape seasoning.
Find green garlic and garlic scapes from Lee’s One Fortune Farm (Asheville City, Black Mountain, West Asheville, River Arts District, Weaverville, and East Asheville markets), Wild East Farm (North Asheville and River Arts District markets), Bear Necessities (West Asheville Tailgate Market), and Gaining Ground Farm (North Asheville and River Arts District markets). Similar to garlic scapes, the Lee’s have onion scapes too, which are the flowering stalks at the tip of the plant.
Have you eaten your fill of spring strawberries? (Silly question, we know.) But even if you’re still enjoying those red fruits, make a little room for cherries. Cherries already have a very short harvest window in Western North Carolina, and with a late frost this year, we may not see a huge crop come to markets at all. But Bright Branch Farm will have them at East Asheville and Biltmore Park markets along with McConnell Farms at North Asheville Tailgate Market. Eat them fresh in a salad with goat cheese, thinly sliced spring onions, and tender spring lettuces or arugula. Or bake them into bread, pies, cobblers, jams, or whatever else that puts the cherry on top.
At spring markets, find a variety of produce including strawberries, leeks, onions, collards, broccoli, lettuces, mixed greens, Asian greens, turnips, radishes, beets, parsnips, carrots, and more. You’ll also find farm-fresh eggs, cheese, bread, pastries, fermented products, drinks, and prepared foods. As always, you can find information about farms, tailgate markets, and farm stands, including locations and hours, by visiting ASAP’s online Local Food Guide at appalachiangrown.org.