Into The Wild - Linguine with Wild Garlic, Lemon, Olive Oil and Pecorino

Wild garlic is one of the few reasons why I love spring. The others being asparagus, Jersey Royal potatoes, tender spring lamb, broad beans etc, So okay, there might be more than just a few. But why wouldn't I be? If you think about the long dreary winter that preceded this wonderful season when suddenly you get bombarded by all these beautiful zingy and fresh seasonal produce, it's simply marvellous. The possibility of soon we'll all be sitting in our sunny garden(if that ever happens) and merrily sipping some chilled Pimms  while watching the boat race on the television (yes that's what mobile TV are made for, however a long cabled TV will work just as well).

So guess the excitement I had when I walked past Borough market yesterday and came across this solitary packet of organic wild garlic - not all of us are habitual forager so do not judge me. I'm sure the greengrocer were bemused by my reaction as I gasp quite loudly right in front of the till when I spotted this parked next to it.

Once I got home, I immediately started planning on what I can do with it. I decided to just let the wild garlic be the true star of the dish and treated it with as little adornment as possible. And so this quick and simple supper is what I've made. The lemon worked very well and gave the pasta sauce a fresh and zingy taste. Perfect for a light spring supper.

And now there is just one thing I need to do....forage for more (from farmers market or perhaps taking up foraging as a full time career, which I am serious contemplating)

Ingredients

225g dried linguine

50ml extra virgin olive oil

juice of 2 lemons

75g Pecorino cheese, grated

a bunch of wild garlic

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the linguine according to packet's instructions until al dente. 

In the meantime, whisk the olive oil and  lemon juice in a large bowl and gradually add the pecorino until  well mix and slightly emulsify. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

 Drain the linguine and immediately add to the bowl. Roughly tear up the wild garlic and add to the pasta. The remaining heat will gently wilt the herbs. Serve immediately with more grated pecorino if wish.