This “primavera” recipe is different than most in that its base is a ramp sofrito. Ramps are wild leeks that come out in the spring. Feel free to add other vegetables as you see fit, but keep it seasonal. It also differs in that it is thickened with egg yolks, mimicking the “Carbonara” syle, as opposed to cream and butter.

1 lb. linguine
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
4 ramps, rinsed and outer membrane removed, roughly chopped
3 carrots, julienned
1 handful green beans, topped and tailed, and trimmed and halved if big
1 handful asparagus, trimmed, sliced and halved if big
3 portabello mushrooms, rinsed and sliced
2 egg yolks, beaten
Pecorino Romano or freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to boil. While it comes to a boil, clean and chop your carrots, green beans, and asparagus.

Make a sofrito paste by blending the cleaned ramps and garlic in a mini blender with some olive oil and salt.

Blanch the green beans, asparagus, and carrots in the pot of water. Start with the green beans, giving them a few minutes before you add the asparagus. Add the carrots after another 2 minutes. Use tongs to remove the vegetables from the pot and rinse in cold water.

Heat up 1 tablespoon or so of olive oil in a large sauté pan and add the ramp sofrito. Let it sweat and cook slowly, so as not to burn. After a few minutes, add the mushrooms. If the pan gets too dry, add a few drops of water or dry white wine.

When the mushrooms have cooked through, add the beans, asparagus, and carrots. Stir together in the pan and turn down the heat to very low.
Cook the pasta in the same pot that you cooked the vegetables according to the instructions on the package. Reserve up to 1 cup of cooking liquid before you drain the pasta.

Drain the pasta and immediately return to the pot with some of the liquid. Quickly add the egg yolks and stir to coat well. Toss in the vegetables and cheese and toss again, so that everything is fully mixed.

Serves 4.

Possible additions: morel mushrooms, fresh peas, herbs such as dill, parsley, and mint.

This glorious recipe is a combination of sunflower butter, sunflower sprouts, and Jerusalem artichokes (a relative of the sunflower). It is a delicious light lunch or dinner that will put a smile on everyone’s face.

1 cup shelled, raw sunflower seeds
5 Jerusalem artichokes (sunchokes)
1 bunch sprouted sunflower seeds
1 lime
pinch of paprika
pinch of salt
2 whole wheat pitas

Lightly toast the sunflower seeds in a dry skillet and then turn out onto a plate to cool.
Grind them in a food processor until they break down, release their oils, and become a butter. This takes a little bit of patience, but sunflower butter is natural and exquisite, and you are better off making it at home than buying a product with additives.

Peel the sunchokes and slice them thinly into rounds. You can also peel them, and then boil them in water whole like you would a potato. Once they are cooked through, simply slice them into rounds, or dice them up.
I have made them both ways, and like the combination of the crispy and smoother textures on the same pita. Marinate the sliced sunchokes in the juice of the lime, with the salt and paprika.

Slice the pitas in half, so that you have two thin rounds. Toast them until nice and crispy.

Spread a nice thin layer of the sunbutter on the pitas, add the marinated sunchokes, and then top everything off with the sunflower sprouts.

Delicious!

For the Dumplings:
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 egg, beaten
¾ cup milk
1 T olive oil
¼ cup grated Pecorino cheese
2 T parsley, finely chopped

For the Grass:
6 cups packed chopped spinach, well rinsed
Parsley stems from the parsley used above
½ cup fresh or frozen peas
½ cup heavy cream

Garnish:
½ cup edible flowers
2 T chopped fresh dill
shaved pecorino romano cheese
1 T toasted pine nuts

Sift the flours, salt, baking powder, and cheese into a bowl.
Stir the egg, milk, olive oil, and parsley into the flours and mix with a fork. If the dough is too wet, add more flour.
Make the dumplings by forming them with two spoons (watch the demo), and then placing them on a floured surface.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, and then blanch the spinach in the water for about 30 seconds. Scoop out of the water into an ice bath, and reserve the cooking water.
Blend the spinach, parsley stems, and 1 cup of the cooking water in a blender on high speed until thoroughly blended, then strain into a pot.
Bring the spinach liquid to a boil, and simmer until reduced slightly. Pour in the cream and keep simmering to reduce even further.
Add the peas towards the end, and just cook them until they are cooked through.
You do not want such a thick sauce at the end, so stop reducing the liquid once it has thickened slightly, but is still soupy.

Poach the dumplings in either simmering chicken broth or reserved spinach cooking water.

Ladle the green soup into wide bowls, then add the dumplings, about 4 per person, and then arrange the fresh dill and edible flowers around them. Serve with the Pecorino.

Makes 20 dumplings.

This type of kubba is typical of Mosul, where wheat is the common ingredient. This is an easy dish to make, plus it can last for a few days. Make it for a party, and serve a slice for an appetizer, or eat it a few nights in a row.

2 T grated onion
1 ½ cups bulgur
3 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
1 handful asparagus, trimmed
½ lemon
½ lb ground chicken thigh meat
3 T Parmesan cheese
¼ cup pine nuts

Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Set a pot of water to a rolling boil, and season it well.
Slice the asparagus into small little circles, so that they are not overwhelming in comparison to the meat or the bulgur.
Pour them into the boiling water for about 30 seconds, then drain.
Heat up about 2 T of olive oil in a pot, and gently fry the grated onion until it is translucent. Tip in the bulgur, stir, and pour over the water. Season with salt and bring the water to a boil.
Once the water comes to a boil, reduce it to a simmer, and cook covered until the water is absorbed.
Cool the bulgur once it is cooked. Mix in the Parmesan cheese, and check the seasoning.
Toss the meat with the blanched asparagus, pine nuts, juice from the lemon, and season it well.
Line the bottom of a cake pan with olive oil.
Plant a layer of bulgur on the bottom, allowing some of them to stick together.
Pat it down nicely.
Next, add the layer of meat, and distribute everything evenly.
Layer the rest of the bulgur on top of the meat. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle some water on top.
Bake the kubba covered with aluminum foil for 10 minutes.
Remove the foil and reduce the oven temperature to 375˚F. Finish baking the kubba uncovered for about 30 minutes, until the top is browned nicely.
Enjoy!