We went to the Farmer's Market in Asheville and found a vegetable I had never seen before.
"What is it?" I asked the guy working. "Ramps," he answered. I had heard of ramps before (on cooking shows) but had never seen them up close and personal. "They only grow at certain elevations" he continued (which explained why I hadn't seen them in Miami) and they're only around in the Spring. I HAD to get them, because who knew when I would get the chance to eat ramps again? "What do they taste like?" I asked. "Like a cross between a leek and garlic" he told me. And "How do you cook them?" I inquired. "I like to fry them in a little bacon fat (we were in North Carolina here) and mix them in with eggs or potatoes." Which is exactly how I cooked them and they were delicious. The bottom of the ramps looked like the bulb of a scallion and was covered in dirt (easily washed off. The top part was flat, green and leafy and infinitely easier to clean than leeks. When we went into town, I even saw a Ramp Festival, to celebrate the brief season of these delicious, delicate, high-growing veggies.
On Facebook, they had a questionnaire (you know, the ones where they raid your personal info if you answer it) on how many unusual foods you had eaten. I had eaten 73, but some of them (a moon pie!) didn't really qualify as unusual. Still, I made a list of new foods to try. I don't even know what most of them are, but here goes.
Abalone
Absinthe
Dandelion Wine
Durian
Fugel
Paneer
Phaal
Tom Yum
At least now I can cross ramps off my list!
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