I grew up eating garlic scapes from my Italian father’s organic garden, but this is a delicacy cooks are now discovering at their local farmers’ market. A species of the onion family, scapes are the green flower stems that garlic plants produce before the bulbs mature. Since there are different varieties of garlic, scapes will vary in size. The flavor is much lighter and less pungent than a regular garlic clove, so they make for a nice pesto or tasty seasoning for a sweet tomato salad without the strong garlic aftertaste. Chopped scapes are great sautéed in a bit of olive oil and served over scrambled eggs, fresh pasta, wild rice, or mashed potatoes. Grow some garlic and harvest your own garlic scapes today!    MARIA DESIDERATA MONTANA