It’s Ramp Season! And I am ready to RAMP up my Spring cooking!
Ramps are wild leeks and are naturally found growing in the Appalachian range, stretching from Georgia to Maine! My home is right down the road from the entrance to the Appalachian Trail, so I was hoping I could get my hands on some ramps quickly and easily! In the past when I was first introduced to ramps, I only ever was able to find them at local Farmer’s Markets and once at Whole Foods. Now, I am a regular at my favorite organic farm, Blooming Hill Farm and this year the ramps are looking so good!
You can read more about the farm from a blog post a few years back I’m all RAMPED up! Ramps are not only so good when added to eggs, salads, fish or meat, they are also packed with nutrients! I added not only the Ramps health benefits graphic below but also some information regarding leeks. Although the graphic shows a different kind of leek, the nutrient benefits are similar! I found both of these graphics on pinterest!
So to begin, I want to share with you the best salad dressing in the world! I usually only use olive oil and maybe a dash of vinegar on my salads. I let the greens in the salad do most of the flavor work, not some heavy dressing loaded with extra stuff that isn’t needed. Chopping up ramps then mixing them with olive oil and vinegar is a great way to get the nutrients from these wild vegetables while also savoring how tasty these leafy delicacies are!
First, clean, rinse and cut the hairy part of the bulb off and discard.
Now using the entire ramp, from leaf to white bulb, cut into chopped pieces.
Using a blender, mix 1/3 cup white wine vinegar. I’ve used red vinegar as well, both taste great!
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
A better Olive Oil to use is California Olive Ranch or Tree To Table, which is also from California. Keeping it local keeps it a better likelihood it is actually true Olive Oil and not full of “fillers” such as regular vegetable oil.
Pour together the olive oil, the vinegar and chop up the ramps, using the entire ramp from the bulb through the green leaf! Use plenty to get that perfect garlic and onion flavor!
Blend all ingredients together for a magical green mixture! The only blender I have is this protein blender from GNC. Need a new one.
And there you have it! Spring Ramp Dressing!
While at the Farmer’s Market where I found my ramps, I picked up a lot of organic produce. Here, I’m mixing leafy kale, spinach, and baby lettuce together for a very green salad!
I added some avocado and organic broccoli for a plant protein boost, then poured my Spring Ramp Dressing over top and enjoyed! I mean thoroughly enjoyed!! Scraping every last piece to get every bite! I wish you were here so I could make you a salad and then you would know yourself how good this is!
While I pretend to have you here, I’ll make you some eggs and ramps! I sauteed the the eggs right next to the farm fresh eggs!
Rinsed and cleaned fresh organic arugula from the farm…
And for a peppery, garlicky, oniony egg breakfast, I placed it all together and poured the dressing over! Green eggs that would make Dr. Seuss proud!
Lastly I roasted them in the oven, at 400F with a bit of olive oil drizzled over. They were good and actually took on a bit of a sweeter taste!
Use your fingers to crunch on these, similar to kale chips!
I’m all ramped up on tasty, healthy, local, organic food! Nutritiously well-fed!
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 0 |
| Servings |
servings
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- 1 cup chopped ramps hair removed, use entire ramp, chopped from the leaf to white bulbs
- 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
- 2/3 cup olive oil
Ingredients
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- Clean, rinse and cut the hairy part of the bulb off and discard. Chop up entire ramp from leaf to white bulb, place in blender.
- Add all ingredients: vinegar, olive oil and ramps. Blend until smooth.
- Add to salad, on top of eggs, white fish, chicken, anything you'd prefer an extra onion-garlic kick!
How long will you ramp dressing last in the refrigerator?
Hello,
Honestly we use it up so fast, it’s gone within three or four days, so I’ve never had it in the fridge for long. But it should last well more than a week, even two weeks since it is a vinegar and oil based dressing.
Jamie