RECIPE | three wild garlic recipes to celebrate the start of spring with

Wild garlic has to be one of springtime's most underrated treasures: a simple and beautiful bounty of nature that's oh-so easy to use. Just being able to amble through a valley filled with swathes of wild garlic is a pleasure all to itself. And the gift just keeps giving with the ability to forage, and conjure up seasonal treats.

Here, in my little market town in the Cotswolds, the sun is shining and the walls are bursting with dainty purple flowers, bulbs are flowering, birds are singing and the scent of growth is in the air. 

We took a walk for Mothering Sunday to one of our favourite spots. We hadn't intended on doing any foraging, but the second we dipped down into the woodland our nostrils were filled with the pungent smell of wild garlic, and so, we got picking.

Below are some tried-and-tested recipes using wild garlic you may want to add to your repertoire. Do let me know if you give any a go, and I'd love to know your go-to wild garlic recipes, too: come chat to me on Instagram. And, for a little later on in the season, you can also find out how to pickle wild garlic bulbs (so fun!). 

In the meantime, get those taste buds prepped for these delicious wild garlic recipes – a perfect ode to the beginning of spring. 

1. Wild garlic and orzo minestrone

   Claire, aka the 5 O'clock Apron, is one of my go-to cooks for seasonal family recipes with no fuss but filled with flavour. You're like to have the ingredients for this recipe lurking around in your cupboards so it's a fantastic recipe to make off the cuff, whether for one, or for many. 

2. Wild garlic pesto

   Easily one of the quickest and most delicious recipes to have in your repertoire ~ a spoonful or two of this can elevate even the simplest of suppers. Stir into pasta, dollop onto soup, spread on toast and top with a sliced tomato, whizz into hummus or add extra oil and drizzle onto salad. *I replace the pignuts with pine nuts, or more often almonds or walnuts which are cheaper. You can also leave out the parmesan and add more nuts if you're vegan. 

3. Wild garlic & cheese scones

   When I think of scones, I think of my sister and my dad – if ever there is a family crisis, or someone in need of some sort of comfort, a scone always manages to appear. Not the kind with jam and clotted cream, but cheesy ones, warmed in the oven with a slap of butter on the top. My sister now lives in Australia and her one request when she returns home is for my dad to make her cheese scones. This is a twist on the cheese scone recipe I always use ~ omit the mustard powder and replace the chives for 75g chopped wild garlic, enough to taste the garlic, but not too much that it's overpowering.