How I love the start of spring. The yard starts to look lush and green, daffodils start to pop up from their winter hiding places, and new leaves start to adorn the trees' bare branches. Best of all, though, is the bright, fresh produce that begins to appear in the markets - asparagus, greens, artichokes, tender young pea shoots, even the very first berries, a tantalizing preview of summer, my favorite season of all. I love my hearty soups, squash, and potatoes, but after a while you can only eat so much kale. By the time winter winds down, I'm ready for some new life in my food.
Produce somehow always seems to taste better when it comes from your own backyard. I don't have my own vegetable garden, and with our impending drought, now isn't the ideal time to plant one. That will be a project for another year. In the meantime, though, there are a few little goodies growing in my yard. For example, the wild onions that we never planted, but pop up of their own accord every spring. I've always enjoyed looking at them, but have never gotten around to harvesting or trying to eat them. Until today, that is!
They're lovely, aren't they? I think those little white bells just scream spring.

After a bit of research to ensure that I'm not poisoning my family, I whipped up a cauliflower and wild onion frittata. I cooked the cauliflower florets in my cast iron skillet, letting them audaciously walk the line between burnt and deliciously crispy brown, then I set them aside for a bit. I threw the onions in the same pan with a bit of butter, turned down the heat, and let them caramelize for a good while. Once that was done, I beat 6 eggs with a dash of nutmeg, and added everything back into the skillet, along with a sprinkling of parmesan, of course. I let it start to firm up around the edges, then threw it the 400 degree oven for somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes. Since my research tells me all parts of the onions are edible, even the flowers, I sprinkled them on top as a garnish, so if you don't hear from me for a while you know to call poison control.

Happy Spring!