During the growing season, I have a few trusted sources for vegetables. Sometimes my husband buys them at the supermarket, sometimes we get them from the garden growing alongside my house, and sometimes we pick up a box of CSA (community-supported agriculture) vegetables. One thing I love about the CSA option is the surprise factor. There’s nothing like opening a box to discover something either I’ve never seen before, or whose name I don’t know, or that I would not otherwise have purchased. I have always felt like this, even before finding recipes was as simple as entering the name of an unfamiliar ingredient into a search bar and tapping “Enter.”

I like to keep things simple, and I hate wasting. When I am asked about my plans for the Swiss chard, for example, I usually share this recipe: Wash the leaves thoroughly, separate the stems, and chop the stems into 1-inch pieces. Chop the leaves coarsely, or roll into tight cigars and slice into a chiffonade. Place the stems in a hot frying pan with a teaspoon each of water and olive oil, and layer the leaves on top. Then steam for a minute or two just until the leaves begin to wilt, and add a sprinkle of Kosher salt. That’s all there is to it.

I don’t ride roller coasters and I don’t like scary movies — I have always felt that real life provides all the excitement I need. But I do enjoy traveling, particularly to places that someone else picked and I would never otherwise have chosen to go. To me, nothing is more fun than going along for the ride, cheering on people as they trust their instincts and follow the threads of their passions wherever they lead. I like ending up in places, physical or otherwise, that I myself would never have chosen. These always turn out to be the greatest adventures of my life.

Even though it’s on a much smaller scale, my weekly CSA share produces a similar type of feeling. I very much appreciate the zucchini, onions, and leafy green lettuce, but I absolutely adore the Swiss chard, the chamomile (jam it into a small mug and pour boiling water over it) and the things whose names I don’t know yet. They all take me somewhere I have never gone. This brings me to the subject of garlic scapes.

In the coming weeks, you may be one of those people who ask “What exactly are garlic scapes?” Garlic, along with its relatives in the allium family (leeks, chives, scallions, onions), begins its underground life as a soft bulb. As garlic bulbs begin to harden, a shoot rises up and curls above the ground. This shoot, or flower stalk, is called the “scape,” and I have read that it appears only in the finest hardneck varieties of garlic. If left unattended, the scape eventually straightens, hardens and turns the papery-beige color of a garlic peel. But in the process of growing, it absorbs a generous share of energy from the plant, and this keeps the garlic bulb from growing large and fragrant. So some farmers harvest the scape in full curl, when it is still tender, green, and delicious.

Here are some things you can do with garlic scapes: 1) grill them like asparagus; 2) chop them up and add them to eggs, vegetables, salad, rice, pasta or a stir-fry; 3) cut them to green-bean size, sauté in butter or olive oil for 6-8 minutes, and splash with a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar in the final minute of cooking; or 4) make garlic scape pesto.

To make pesto, chop 4-8 garlic scapes into 1-inch pieces, and toss into a food processor. Add approximately 2 teaspoons of grated parmesan cheese (optional) and 2 teaspoons of walnuts or pumpkin seeds, toasted if you prefer. Pour in 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, a little salt and pepper, and give it a spin —> voila, garlic scape pesto! Spread your pesto on toast, add it to pasta, or place a tablespoonful in a little ramekin with a raw egg (cracked open, no shell). Place the ramekin in a toaster oven, and bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. This simple recipe is so incredibly flavorful and heavenly that I guarantee it will put a glow on the rest of your day.

Like many special gifts from the garden, garlic scapes have their own very short season, so don’t miss your chance when they come around in the coming weeks!