Muskegon  Farmers Market shoppers:  let us know how you have used our Garlic Scapes, Garlic Pearls, Herbs and Green Garlic.

Submitted by Dorothy S.

For soups and sauces, can I use unripened elephant garlic, harvested in April before the bulb is mature, in the same manner as a leek, using green stalks as well as bulb?
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Response from Rickertville Farm:
Dorothy,
Elephant garlic is actually a type of  leek which has a mild garlic characteristics, with an earthy overtone that many people prefer over the heat of true garlic.  When harvesting the mature Elephant Leek/garlic it need to cure, age for 30 days, prior to usage or it will have a bitter taste. 

However, the scape, or flower stalk, is editable.  Since many people sell the Elephant "Garlic" scape as a true garlic scape there should be no reason that the green Elephant leek/garlic would not have the same palatability as it's scape.  As for harvesting the green "garlic", and using it as a leek in soups etc, I would suggest tasting it prior to cooking with it.