Ramson, also called “wild garlic” is a plant with a strong garlic taste. Its latin name Allium Ursinum means You can use the leaves to cook or even the flowers when they are not yet open to do some conserve with vinegar. One of my favorite recipe to do with ramson is pesto but this time we cooked also homemade ramson and ricotta ravioli.
The season of the ramson is back and I couldn’t resist to go in the forest to get some. It was also a good excuse to go out with my flatmates and fill some bags with this succulent plant. The ramson is also called bear garlic in some language. You will find ramson in forest near river or streams but also in forest fresh enough.
Ramson ravioli for 4-5 persons:
- 500 gr of ricotta
- 350-450 gr of ramson leaves or flowers (volume of ~5 liters of fresh leaves)
- 5 eggs
- 500 gr of flour
- salt and pepper
Mix the ramson to obtain a paste.
Mix it with the ricotta and add some salt and pepper.
If you want a strong garlic taste, use ~450gr of ramson.
Keep this mix the fridge while you prepare the pasta.
To prepare the pasta, mix the eggs with the flour, if the dough is to dry, add some water.
Use then your good pasta machine to prepare layers, adjust them to have same length.
With the ravioli accessory, it is easy to prepare the ravioli directly filled with the ramson and ricotta.
Cook the ravioli for 3 minutes in boiling water and enjoy your meal.
Serve with grated parmigiano.
Where and when to find the ramson?
Ramson grows in pretty fresh forest or near humid areas near streams or rivers. The good period is late march or beginning of April when spring flowers start blooming. While hiking on the Jura Crest Trail, I could find many ramson in the mountains even during summer time as the air is colder.
My favorite spot is in Penthalaz, the village in which I grew up, the forest is literally covered when you go the in the right period. We decided with friends to go there hiking from Le Mont-sur-Lausanne to pickup some Ransoms.
While doing this hike, we discovered many other places where ramson can be found in the area. As many friends asked me where they could find wild garlic, I created the following map of places where you can find ramson around Lausanne.
Warning, do not mistake with other plants!
Ramson can be mistaken with other non edible plants (poisonous plants), inform yourself well before to eat that plant and take it on your own risk. If you smell the leaves, you will notice that it smells like garlic.
Check the wiki page to learn interesting facts about the ramson.
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