It is wise to eat the garlic chive flowers, otherwise left to their own devises these prolific self seeders will take over the garden. The leaves and flowers are edible garlic goodness. I look forward to their flowering to put a couple in my cooking wine to infuse some garlic into the wine. It is also easy to create garlic chive vinegar by just covering the garlic chive flowers in vinegar and leaving them in a dark place for four weeks. My next favorite is to mix the garlic chive flowers with chopped nasturtium flowers in cream cheese to serve on crackers. The garlic chive leaves are tougher than onion chive leaves, so it is wise to chop them finer. The flowers and leaves are a nice garlicky addition to potatoes or egg dishes (especially scrambled and deviled). Deborah Yost made mash potato with garlic chives, lemon oregano, garlic, and double cream Gloucester cheese, butter, milk and of course potatoes for Garlic Nosh. Judy Easley Shutts added the chopped leaves into her homemade marinara. The flowers also make a lovely garnish. So tonight toss some garlic chives on your baked potato, on your salad and in your pasta before they take over your garden. How do you eat garlic chives?
- Jill Kuhel
