It’s garlic scape time!  The Goddess lives for this time of year.  There’s so much we can do with them and these mushrooms are a great vehicle to shine a delicious light on them!  Garlic scapes are the shoot that garlic plants send up to produce their bloom.  But for garlic growers, this isn’t good.  While the plant is busy putting forth our beloved scape, it’s taking energy from producing a larger bulb.  It’s a conundrum…scape or bulb; bulb or scape?  Fortunately, we can have both.  So for about two weeks in early June, the grower cuts the scape off and if you are lucky enough to have a source (Thank YOU, Gardening Engineer!), get some.  They are garlic, but without the harshness.  For this recipe, I mince the scapes.  If you want to learn more, The Goddess went more in-depth in an earlier post which you can read here.  I’ll be tossing them into some Caesar dressing later on today.  They pickle and they freeze beautifully.  Do make some scape pesto.  It is wonderful with almost anything.  We love it with pasta and/or chicken.  Oh, and there’s pizza, too.  Add to mayonnaise, or add to Marinated Eggplant, or Lemon-Pistachio Pasta Duet…there are more, but you’ll have to look them up!

This goes together very quickly—Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat.  You can use a different skillet, but cast iron is great.  Add the oil; when hot, add the mushrooms.  Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms release their liquid and the mushrooms begin to brown, about 4-5 minutes.  Toss in the scapes; stir for about 30 seconds.  Deglaze the pan with the Marsala; let it cook down to almost nothing.  Stir in the heavy cream; let come to the boil.  Lower the heat; simmer until the mixture thickens slightly.  Remove from the heat and serve immediately.  This is excellent with steak, chicken, pork, pasta and with a spoon, right out of the skillet!!  If you’re feeling “saucy”, simply add more cream.  I decided not to be quite so saucy, and served it as side for steak.  It makes a great topping for burgers, too.

I was going to add a squeeze of lemon juice and a bit of Worcestershire sauce.  But, then I tasted the melange.  It’s pretty perfect!  Creamy, complex, meaty and just plain YUM!  If the pan wasn’t hot, I’d probably lick it clean…but that’s what bread is for!

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