This is the time of year when the foraging starts in earnest and it starts with either wild nettles or, today wild garlic or ramsons. A water loving member of the alium family, these wonderful plants can be found in deep, shady glades from March until the end of May. Their leaves are used mostly, but the amazingly aromatic flowers can be used to decorate salads to startling effect. I use Wild Garlic in many recipes this time of year and I always pick it fresh as it cannot be kept for longer than 24 hours. The best recipe, though in the early season is a nice heart-warming soup.
Most soups, certainly the vegetable variety, start with the base - the more delicate the main ingredient, the later it is added in the cooking process. The base for most of my soups starts with frying some finely chopped onion until it's soft but not very brown. You can use oil or butter - I use a combination of both to stop the butter from burning. Then I add any other ingredients that need frying off; garlic sometimes, though not this time, leeks, ginger or chilli. This time though it's just the onion and then I add a litre of vegetable stock, some chopped potato, chopped carrot, celery and parsley. At this stage I also add the seasoning. I use vegetable stock because my wife is vegetarian, but I still prefer it over chicken stock in this delecate dish anyway.
After the soup has simmered for 20 minutes or so I add the chopped wild garlic leaves and cook for another ten minutes or so. Then I liquidise the broth to form a nice thick soup. To keep the green colour, add some cooked peas at the food processor stage, a vibrant green is maintained.
Serve with some drizzled cream and some chopped raw wild garlic if you wish. A crusty loaf is almost certainly a must.
