Ramps: A woodland prize or just a leafy onion?

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When we moved to the Carolinas I discovered that there was a seasonal favorite that was new to me. In the spring farmer’s markets all around start selling ramps. Sometimes someone will even set up a card table on the side of the road to sell them. 
They are sold in a bunch, with the roots. The picture above is two bunches from the farmer’s market and cost $10. 
Ramps are a wild woodland edible sometimes called a wild leek or wood leek. Their leaves are long, flat and very green. On the root end they look like a green onion. The smell is strongly onion, but also somewhat musty. 
For my first Ramp application I decided to make some noodle dish for a bento box. 


I washed and chopped about half a bunch of ramps, then sautéed them in sesame oil. While that was happening I took some instant noodles and soaked them in hot water with their flavoring packet. 
Once the noodles were soft I transferred them into the skillet with the ramps using tongs so the soaking liquid was left behind. They cooked together until the excess water cooked off. 

The results was very good, but I’m not sure they were much better than if I had used a bunch of green onions. 
Tomorrow I’m going to try to sauté a full bunch with mushrooms and use them on pasta. Maybe I need to use more ramps. Check back and I’ll let you know. 

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