Beluga Lentil Caviar on Buckwheat Blinis

In spring, a different kind of turnip is available: a small, round, golf ball-shaped Hakurei turnip, often referred to as a salad turnip. These are lovely and crisp when eaten raw but can also be lightly sautéed and infused with flavour. In this dish, the turnips are first stir-fried and then coated in a dressing of miso, ginger, garlic, and honey before tossing with some spring salad leaves. Choose leaves that will stand up to the warmth of the salad, like a young mustard green mix including leaves such as tatsoi and mizuna. Keep the greens Turnip greens, especially the tender ones from spring turnips, can be steamed or prepared in a similar fashion to spinach, so be sure to reserve the greens and use them in another dish.

A simple stir-fry is a quick and easy meal that makes the most of fresh vegetables. This spring-inspired stir-fry leans on spring onions, the first fresh snow peas, baby spinach, and fiddleheads. Szechuan (a.k.a. Sichuan) peppercorns add a layer of complexity to this dish with a pleasing citrus flavour and a slight numbing heat. They can be found in specialty spice stores, but if you can’t find them you can still enjoy the gingery-garlicky, spicy heat of the other ingredients. Fiddlehead facts Fiddleheads are recognizable by their tightly wound coiled shape. The young shoots of the ostrich fern, they’re a foraged plant and often available at farmers’ markets or specialty grocery shops. Their flavour is often compared to green beans or asparagus with a sweet, grassy taste. Look for fresh fiddleheads with tight spirals. If any papery covering remains, it should be removed prior to cooking. Due to the risk of foodborne illness, fiddleheads should always be cooked prior to eating. Even when sautéing, it’s recommended to boil or steam them first.

Leek and potato soup is a spring classic and really shines with new-season leeks. This soup takes the classic recipe a step further in a celebration of spring alliums by adding charred spring onions and garlic scapes, the immature flowering part of the garlic plant. Unlike the garlic bulb, scapes impart a gentler, fresher garlic flavour. Garlic—two for one Hardneck varieties of garlic, such as Russian Red, develop a flowering stock called a scape, which extends from the plant in a green coil. Growing your own garlic will give you two crops—a crop of bulbs in late July and, prior to that, in late May or early June, tender garlic scapes. Harvesting garlic scapes, before they flower, not only provides a delicious crop you can use in myriad ways but also essentially helps the plant divert its energy to producing the garlic bulbs—the part we use most often. Scapes are ready to harvest when they curl downward and begin to coil.

In April, we’re coming to the end of the season for Belgian endives, but if you haven’t already indulged, it’s a great time to take advantage of this bounty. Braising is a delicious way to cook this slightly bitter leaf, also called witloof or chicory. In this dish, its slight bitterness is perfectly complemented by the sweet braising liquid of orange, honey, and mustard before being given a dash of licorice flavour with a sprinkling of tarragon. Freshly squeezed You’ll need two oranges to get the amount of orange juice and zest required for this recipe. Wash oranges well before zesting.