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Spring onions are a sure sign that a gardeners on his or her way to a Valhalla garden. What can be better than to see one’s gardening efforts burst forth with those luscious little spring onions?
Just writing about them makes my mouth water. Pluck them out, wash them off, cut off the root ends and dip in a mound of kosher salt and chew away.
When you pick them before the bulb has a chance to form they are called scallions and you can eat the whole thing, green stem and all. Spring onions are often referred to as green onions.
Some times a recipe calls for shallots which come in clusters of two or three bulbs attached and they have a more assertive flavor than scallions.
Leeks are somewhat larger than onions and sometimes as small as a scallion. Mysterious! But they have a heartier flavor and are much crunchier. Plus leeks are really sandy and need to be washed and cleaned very well.
Right now our lawn and rose gardens are loaded with ramps. Ramps are nothing more than wild mountain leeks and are sometimes referred to as Tennessee Truffles. They have almost a garlic flavor. They arrive when the dandelions arrive and both have a very short season. In the eastern part of the U.S. ramps are gleaned in the forests from the end of March until early May.
Chives are a member of the onion family and the plant can be eaten from the top to the bottom. They can usually be grown anywhere and are so easy that you can keep a pot of them going on your window sill through out the year.
All of the above are usually eaten raw, but can be grilled or sautéed.
An old wife’s tale says, “When you plant your onion sets and once the onions are on their way, if you bend over the tops of them the bulbs will grow larger.” Wrong, bending over the tops will stop the bulb from developing and your onions will probably be immature causing them to not cure or dry properly.
Growing onions from sets is usually the quickest way to grow onions though they can be grown from seeds. Onion sets are put out as soon as the soil can be tilled. You can pull green onions once the tops reach 6 inches tall.
Onions truly are the easiest thing to grow and there are so many recipes. However, when I lived in Australia I often enjoyed these wonderful treats.
Oriental Green Onion Pancakes
1 & 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup self rising flour
1 cup boiling water
2 teaspoons vegetable oil or Asian sesame oil
2 spring onions (scallions, green onions), washed and thinly diced (or as you like)
a bit of oil to brush on pancakes
a bit of salt to sprinkle on pancakes during frying
Preparation:
Combine the 2 flours in a large bowl. Stir in the vegetable oil. Pour in half the boiling water into the flour and begin stirring immediately, then use your hands to combine into dough. Add the remaining boiling water as needed. Cover the dough and let it rest for 2 hours.
While the dough is resting, wash and dice the spring onions.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead briefly, then cut into thirds and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic.
Roll each of the three sections of dough out into a flat piece approximately 1/2 cm or 1/4 inch thick. (If desired, you can make a thinner pancake, about 1/8 inch thick)
Brush the pancake with a bit of oil, and sprinkle with spring onion pieces. Roll up the pancake and cut into 7 - 8 pieces.
Use the palm of your hand to flatten each piece. Roll out again.
Heat a bit of oil in a large skillet. Shallow fry the pancakes until both sides are golden brown, being sure to sprinkle with a bit of salt during frying. While cooking, press down on the center with a spatula to make sure the pancake cooks.
Serve whole or cut into wedges. Serve plain or with soy sauce or another dipping sauce if desired.
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Author Bio Box: Arlene Wright Correll
 For more gardening or cooking information click http://www.learn-america.com/
To see Arlene’s Gardens and to read her gardening diaries or click on Arlene’s Books where you can download or buy her gardening & cook books. Arlene says, “All my royalties from the sale of my books go to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and I thank you for visiting my site.”
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