Bear's leeks (AKA Allium ursinum, Bärlauch, ail des ours, cheremsha,
wild garlic, etc.) are here at last, for few weeks at least.

On Saturday, I scored a few nice, large bunches at the market and
decided to make a simple soup. I had some dried ceps (porcini, boletus
edulis) soaking, intending to make a mushroom-barley soup (sans meat, of
course, as it would be a waste of porcini), but made a light mushroom
broth with parsley and parsnip roots, and celery stalks instead and
cooked some cubed potatoes in it. Meanwhile, I rinsed the bear's leek
leaves, let them quickly wilt in some hot clarified butter, added the
mushroom broth with just the potatoes left in, pepper, salt and allspice
and brought it not quite to the boil. The soup was very tasty indeed
and we ate the lot. The less you cook bear's garlic, the better it
retains its wonderful garlicky flavour.

Victor