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Award-winning chef, author and forager Alan Bergo. Food is all around you.

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Ramp Leaf Spaetzle

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Ramp Leaf Spaetzle Recipe The German in me loves a good spaetzle, and I will make the little dumplings out of just about anything I can. Ramp leaves and green plants make great ones.

The key to getting your spaetzle to actually taste like ramps is a little tricky though–you’re going to need a blender, preferably a vita mix, although you can probably get by with a food processor.

The secret is all in using the ramp leaves raw, without blanching them, making them into a dough, and then cooking them a second time in water.

With a raw purée of ramp leaves, the dough will soak up all of their rampy goodness, and you’ll still be able to taste it even after blanching, frying in butter, and tossing with whatever you like.

Generally I fry them up crisp in butter and toss them with herbs, like parsley, but a few mushrooms or a little diced bacon is great too.

Ramp Leaf Spaetzle Recipe

My spaetzle were a little small since I pushed them through a colander, if you have a spaetzle maker or potato ricer, now is the time to break it out.

Ramp Leaf Spaetzle Recipe
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Ramp Leaf Spaetzle

Green, garlicky spaetzle made from ramp leaves Serves 4-6
Prep Time15 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Resting Time30 mins
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: German
Keyword: Ramp Leaves
Servings: 6

Equipment

  • collander or spaetzle maker or potato ricer

Ingredients

  • 8 oz ramp leaves
  • ¾ cup water
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • 2 cups all purpose flour or bread flour
  • 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard optional
  • ½ cup grated parmesan cheese optional

Instructions

  • Chop the ramp leaves, then put in a blender with the water and eggs, working in batches if needed, until you can buzz it up to a smooth puree. Pour the ramp slurry into a bowl and mix well with the flour.
  • Ideally you’ll let the batter rest for 30 minutes now to autolyze the gluten.
  • Mix in the salt, mustard and parmesan. Meanwhile, bring a gallon of water to a simmer, and, using a spaetzle maker or a colander, pour the batter through the holes. If you’re using a colander, you’ll want to put a good amount in and press around with a spatula.
  • Every few minutes, skim the cooked spaetzle off using a strainer or slotted spoon, and transfer to an oiled baking tray, cookie sheet, etc.
  • When the spaetzle are cooked, rinse them lightly with water to remove starch, then toss with a touch of oil to prevent sticking. From here the spaetzle can be made a day or two in advance. To cook, fry them in butter and toss with herbs.

More 

Ramps: Harvesting, Sustainability, Cooking and Recipes 

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sonja Wieber

    May 5, 2021 at 1:49 pm

    5 stars
    The recipe turned out beautifully! I may make it with half the ramps next time so that this is a little less flavor-filled (or use the spaetzle more sparingly in another dish), but this was fabulous! I doubled it so that I can freeze individual portioned bags of them. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      May 6, 2021 at 7:04 am

      Thanks Sonja. Yes, once you get the hang of the dough/batter you can adjust things however you like.

      Reply

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I made vegan fish sauce from ramp juice. You tak I made vegan fish sauce from ramp juice. 

You take the pure juice of the leaves, mix it with salt, Koji rice, and more chopped fresh ramp leaves, then ferment it for a bit. 

After the fermentation you put it into a dehydrator and cook it at 145-150 F for 30 days. 

The slow heat causes a Maillard/browning reaction over time. 

After 30 days you strain the liquid and bottle it. It’s the closest thing to plant-based fish sauce I’ve had yet. 

The potency of ramps is a pretty darn good approximation of the glutamates in meat. But you could prob make something similar with combinations of other alliums. 

The taste is crazy. I get toasted ramp, followed by mellow notes from the fermentation. Potent and delicate at the same time. 

I’ve been using it to make simple Japanese-style dipping sauces for tempura etc. 

Pics: 
2: Ramp juice 
3: Juicy leaf pulp 
4: Squeezing excess juice from the pulp
5: After 5 days at 145F 
6: After 30 days 
7: Straining through Muslin to finish

#ramps #veganfishsauce #experimentalfood #kojibuildscommunity #fermentation #foraging
Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Oeufs de Gaulle is a classic morel recipe Jacques Pepin used to make for French president Charles de Gaulle. 

You bake eggs in a ramekin with shrimp topped with creamy morel sauce and eat with toast points. 

Makes for a really special brunch or breakfast. Recipe’s on my site, but it’s even better to watch Jacques make it on you tube. 

#jacquespepin #morels #shrimp #morilles #brunchtime
Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each Morels: the only wild mushroom I count by the each instead of the pound. 

Good day today, although my Twin Cities spots seem a full two weeks behind from the late spring. 2 hours south they were almost all mature. 

76 for me and 152 for the group. Check your spots, and good luck! 

#morels #murkels #mollymoochers #drylandfish #spongemushroom #theprecious
The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natu The first time I’ve seen fungal guttation-a natural secretion of water I typically see with plants. 

I understand it as an indicator that the mushrooms are growing rapidly, and a byproduct of their metabolism speeding up. If you have some clarifications, chime in. 

Most people know it from Hydnellum 
peckii-another polypore. I’ve never seen it on pheasant backs before.

Morels are coming soon too. Mine were 1 inch tall yesterday in the Twin Cities. 

#guttation #mushroomhunting #cerioporussquamosus #pheasantback #naturesbeauty
Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a Rain and heat turned the flood plain forest into a grocery store. 

#groceryshopping #sochan #rudbeckialaciniata #foraging
Italian wild food traditions are some of my favori Italian wild food traditions are some of my favorite. 

Case in point: preboggion, a mixture of wild plants, that, depending on the reference, should be made with 5-23 individual plants. 

Here’s a few mixtures I’ve made this spring, along with a reference from the Oxford companion to Italian food. 

The mixture should include some bitter greens (typically assorted asters) but the most important plant is probably borage. 

Making your own version is a good excercise. Here they’re wilted with garlic and oil, but there’s a bunch of traditional recipes the mixture is used in. 

Can you believe this got cut from my book?!

#preboggion #preboggiun #foraging #traditionalfoods
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