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| Topped with fresh ramps |
When cooking with ramps the ideas and uses are limitless, yet
sometimes you have to get back to the basics. This re-creation of a
classic recipe is something I ate growing up and I'm sure many of you have too.
Yet I've made a few tasty alterations to include ramps into the recipe, I’m
sure it will not disappoint. This is my twist on ramp mash potatoes; they are a
great side dish to help introduce people to ramps. This recipe leaves the
potatoes with a mild flavoring of ramps throughout the dish without being over
powering.
Ingredients
8 to 10 – Red Potatoes
4 to 6 – Small/Medium Whole Ramps (bulbs, stalks, and leaves)
4 to 8 Tablespoons – Butter
½ Cup – Milk
In a large pot put water
on to boil while cutting / quartering up potatoes. Once the potatoes are cut,
place them in the boiling water with a pinch or two of salt. Allow for potatoes
to boil for 20 to 30 minutes or until they are soft.
While the potatoes are
boiling separate the ramp bulbs and stems from the leaves. Once the ramps
leaves are separated from the steams, finely mince the steams and bulbs
and rough chop the remaining leaves of the ramps. Add one to two
tablespoons of butter to a small skillet on medium heat. After the majority of
the butter has melted, add the ramps (minced bulbs/stems and rough chopped
leaves) and sauté.
By this time the potatoes
should be soft enough to begin mashing them. To start this process the potatoes
need to be removed from the heat and then drained. Put the drained potatoes
back into the/a pot and run a potatoes masher through the potatoes until they
are broken into small chucks. At this point add two to four tablespoons of
butter and the ½ cup of milk to the mashed potatoes and stir/mix the potatoes.
Continue stirring until they reach your preferred consistency. Now add the
sautéed ramps and butter used to sauté them to the bowl of mashed potatoes; stir
the ramps in until they are mixed thoroughly throughout the potatoes. If you
like your mashed potatoes a little on the creamier side you can add a few more
splashes of milk and then more butter to flavor.
