Creamy Ramp Pesto Pasta
- Total Time
- About 30 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 1large bunch of ramps (about ½ pound), cleaned, roots trimmed, bulbs and stems separated from leaves
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- ¼cup shelled pistachios (preferably the bright green Sicilian variety), lightly toasted
- ½cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- ⅓cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher salt, to taste
- ¾cup bufala ricotta, fresh cow’s milk ricotta or mascarpone (6 ounces)
- 1pound fusilli lunghi or bucatini
- Freshly ground pink peppercorns, for serving (or use ground black pepper)
Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil for pasta. Set aside an ice-water bath in a medium bowl.
- Step 2
Blanch the ramp leaves in boiling water for 15 seconds. Remove with a spider or slotted spoon and immediately plunge them into the ice bath. Drain the leaves and dry on a kitchen towel. Tops should be bright and vibrant green in color.
- Step 3
Add the blanched leaves to a food processor with ¼ of the ramp bulbs and stems, plus the lemon zest and juice, the pistachios and the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Pulse to finely chop, and stream in the olive oil until the pesto comes together into a thick sauce. Taste and, if desired, add more bulbs and stems, a few at a time, then add salt to taste and pulse to combine. (Reserve the remaining bulbs and stems for use in dressings, sautéed vegetable dishes or eggs.)
- Step 4
Place the ricotta or mascarpone in large mixing bowl.
- Step 5
Salt the pasta water and cook pasta about 1 minute less than package directions for al dente. Just before draining, remove ½ cup of the pasta cooking water and add to the ricotta or mascarpone to soften and loosen the cheese. Add the ramp pesto and stir to combine. Drain pasta, add to sauce and toss to coat. Transfer pasta to a serving dish or individual bowls, and top with a generous amount of pink peppercorn.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
Did anyone else have to find out what ramps are?
I live in s. Ca and I never see ramps in the mkt. what can I use as a substitute?
Shortcut: don't separate the stem from the leaves until AFTER you blanch the leaves. Just hold the bulbs and drunk the leaves in the boiling water, hold, and then pull them out after 15 second. The recipe says to only use a quarter of the bulbs but I used all of them. To compensate for the increased flavor of the ramps, I used about one and a half lemons/lemon zest, and a full cup of ricotta. This dish is amazing! Lick the bowl delicious!
Couldn’t find ramps so substituted 3 leeks and 2 garlic cloves instead. Turned out great! Surely a different flavor than with ramps but an easy way to make this a year round recipe.
You can make a batch of the ramp pesto and freeze it in an ice tray, then transfer cubes to a plastic freezer bag. Each cube is about a tablespoon. This is a delicious and lighter pesto, and since ramps are hard to come by, it’s nice to have a supply.
This looks delicious, but why do you cook the pasta one minute less than recommended? Usually recipes that cook the pasta for a shorter time then cook it more in the sauce, but this one does not.
We have ramps now in Seattle, but really, the season is just a few weeks long. Ramps (wild leeks) are foraged in wooded areas in the mid-west and eastern states. I've heard of people trying to cultivate them, but with little success.
Ramps grow in the Appalachian Mountains also. There are at least 3 separate Ramp Festivals in Western NC and eastern TN at this time of year. The festivals serve sauteed ramps in scrambled eggs and/or fry them with bacon in breakfast potatoes. I make them also with angel hair pasta, savory bread pudding and spread on pizza with morels - which are harvested in the same season.
I made this in a mortar and pestle and added some cooked shrimp to the pasta at the end. Worked great!
I couldn't find the pink peppercorns, so I skipped that part. It would also be helpful to write in the exact amount of lemon juice. I had a BIG lemon and it was too much. I went back and added more parmesan to help balance it. I also substituted pine nuts for the pistachios. I mistakenly bought bufala mozzarella instead of the ricotta, but it still turned out delicious!
This pesto was so much better the next day that I would make it ahead next time. I added shrimp for a bit of protein and served with asparagus (which, like the ramps, came in our CSA box).
It's ramp time in VT. I use a steamer to blanch the ramps. If I'm going to freeze, I wing them with oil only, then pull to add to recipes all winter. I will try this full recipe tonight for dinner with a side of grilled sausages. Off to Rampsylvania! Best, Alice
I'm allergic to pistachios, so I made this with walnuts instead. It was incredibly delicious.
Made last night with marscapone and fresh ramps. It was so good and my family loved it! Going back to the farmers market next week to make more to freeze!
Use guanicale, add chopped pistachios to pesto and on top with parmesan, rigatoni
If you forage ramps, as I do, good advice to take them sparingly each year to ensure there are enough to divide and come back. You don't need a lot for a good pesto. Make a batch, divide among small jars and freeze. When you thaw, add a little olive oil to top and store in the 'fridge. We do ramp pesto pasta without the ricotta, tossed with angel hair pasta and fried thin chicken cutlets plus a green salad. Delicious every time.
Adding ricotta or mascarpone to this otherwise delicious pesto dilutes the wonderful tangy taste of the ramps too much. Ramps are rare and hard to find for most folks. Don’t waste them by adding creamy cheese. The pistachios and the pasta temper the pungency of the ramps. Blanching the ramps is also completely unnecessary.
Holy moley! The sauce is delicious!
Ramps are in season in the Maryland and West Virginia area, probably Pennsylvania too right now. I was taught by my grandmother (who grew up here) that they’re wild leeks but they’re probably really wild garlic. I make pesto, or broil them or pickle them or roast them or sauté them. Wish I could send a picture. They’re delicious. I don’t use them as leeks or garlic substitutes.
For a ramp education, check out the 84th annual Feast of the Rampson in Richwood, West Virginia, April 22, 2023 https://www.richwoodchamberofcommerce.org/feast-of-the-ramson#:~:text=FEAST%20OF%20THE%20RAMSON%20Saturday%2C%20April%2022%2C%202023,Community%20Center%20%28formerly%20Armory%20at%20the%20City%20Park%29
I made this pesto without the ricotta. Used some extra spinach I needed to use up and with some pasta water added it was saucy and rich enough as is. We topped with shrimp and red pepper flakes instead of peppercorns. Fabulous.
There is no real substitute for Ramps. They are a wild onion that grows in northern climes. SOOOOo yummy! First thing that appears in late April in our Famer's Market here in Madison, WI. Thanks for the great recipe!
Ramps are called “wild garlic” in the UK. I harvested some leave and stems in a forest in Somerset his spring, so no bulbs. Children and adults loved this pesto. Made some without cheese too for a vegan, and it was still yummy; I just added a bit of olive oil, pasta water, and some nutritional yeast and extra salt. Both versions were quite lemony though, and maybe over shadowed the wild garlic a bit. Will make again next spring!
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