Simple and Delicious Compound Butter with Garlic Scapes and Lemon Zest in 5 Minutes

Learn how to harvest garlic scapes and how to make compound butter with them. This garlic scape butter recipe is so easy to make and adds an incredible mild garlic flavor to any dish.

WHAT IS A GARLIC SCAPE?

Garlic scapes are the edible stem and flower stalks that grow on hardneck garlic varieties that can be cut and enjoyed a couple of weeks before your garlic harvest. They have a milder flavor than garlic, and their tender green shoots make them a delicacy for various delicious recipes.

The garlic scape is actually a flower bud that starts to grow from the bulb. You need to harvest them so that the plant will focus its energy on making larger bulbs, rather than sending its energy to the scape to produce seeds. 

What do garlic scapes taste like?

Garlic scapes can be described as almost a cross between garlic, chives, and green onions. They taste like mild garlic, but without the spiciness that garlic can have.  You can eat them raw, just like you would a green onion, or you can cook them. When they are cooked they take on a sweeter flavor, like roasted garlic. They’re such a versatile vegetable that don’t get nearly the amount of attention they deserve. They are available to harvest for such a short window of time in the early summer, so I look forward to it all year long!

HOW TO GROW GARLIC AND GARLIC SCAPES

If you are interested in growing your own garlic to harvest scapes, you should go for it! Garlic is one of my very favorite things to grow because it’s super easy and we use it in so much of our cooking. It’s an easy food to store and has so many purposes from flavoring dishes to a natural medicinal. There are two types of garlic you can grow, hardneck and softneck garlic. There are a few differences between the two, but hard neck garlic is the only type of garlic that will grow garlic scapes. Softneck varieties will store longer, so they are a great choice if you want to grow garlic for storage and year round use. If you want to enjoy garlic scapes next season, be sure to grow hardneck varieties. I was totally confused when I first attempted to grow garlic, so if you’re interested in learning more you should definitely check out my blog post below where I explain it in full detail.

YOU CAN READ MY FULL POST ON HOW TO GROW GARLIC HERE:

You can read my full post on how to harvest garlic scapes here:

WHEN AND HOW TO HARVEST GARLIC SCAPES

A couple of weeks before your garlic is ready to harvest around late spring or early summer, you will notice a single stalk growing from the center of the plant. Garlic scapes are ready to harvest when they begin to have a full curl. Simply cut the entire scape at their base where they begin to emerge from the leaves with a sharp pair of scissors, but do not cut any of the green leaves or the lower part of the stalk. You will leave the rest of the plant to allow the garlic bulb to fully develop. Removing the scapes allows the plant to put more energy into growing bigger bulbs, and the bonus is that you can eat them! Just be sure to either use sharp shears or if you are removing the scapes with your hand, be careful not to pull too hard and remove the garlic bulbs out of the ground too. 

When garlic scapes are first growing, they have a mild garlic flavor and are tender. If you wait too long to harvest them, they will become fibrous and have a woody texture that is not pleasant to eat. If the garlic scape starts to uncurl, that is a good indication that it is starting to become a woody texture. 

How to store garlic scapes

Garlic scapes have a pretty good shelf life! I find the easiest way to store fresh scapes is by adding the cut ends to a glass of water and storing them in the fridge. If you want to store them for long term use, you can chop them into small pieces, add them to freezer-safe containers, and freeze them. Or, I also like to chop them up and add them to ice cube trays, add olive oil on top, and freeze them so I can pop them out and use them for future use all year long! 

How to cook with garlic scapes 

Garlic scapes can be added to a variety of dishes and are a great option to add some fresh and mild flavor! You can add them to soups, stir-fries, casseroles, or anything else you want to give a subtle garlic flavor to. You can essentially use them any way that you would use green onions! Add them to a dish or use them as a pretty garnish. A great way to use your garlic scape harvest is by making compound butter. 

WHAT IS COMPOUND BUTTER

Compound butter is just a fancy name for butter with some goodies mixed in. You can add sweet or savory ingredients to enhance the flavor of any dish through this fancy butter concoction. We love thyme and honey compound butter on our roasted carrots, and lemon and dill butter on our fish. The possibilities are endless. Making compound butter is one of my favorite ways to use a garlic scape harvest! 

HOW TO MAKE GARLIC SCAPE COMPOUND BUTTER

This recipe could not be more simple, but gives your food a fancy flair. You can trick people into thinking you’re a culinary genius when really you simply chop your ingredients and mix them into softened butter. It’s a simple thing that makes a big impression. You can do this in a stand mixer, or simply mix it by hand. No fancy equipment required.

INGREDIENTS FOR GARLIC SCAPE COMPOUND BUTTER

• 1 cup butter, softened- you can use salted or unsalted butter. 
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh garlic scapes
• zest of one lemon – this adds a nice citrus note that compliments the garlic scapes well. 
• pinch of sea salt if using unsalted butter

DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING GARLIC SCAPE COMPOUND BUTTER

1. Whip the butter by hand or with your appliance of choice. You can use a whisk, hand beaters, or a KitchenAid with the whisk attachment. 
2. Add the chopped garlic scapes, lemon zest, and optional salt. 
3. Mix until combined
4. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week, or roll in a piece of parchment paper, place in a freezer bag, and freeze for several months. 

WAYS TO ENJOY EATING GARLIC SCAPE COMPOUND BUTTER

This butter is pretty versatile, and is delicious on so many different things! I love to use a pat of it on top of a juicy steak, or you can add it on top of a baked potato or inside mashed potatoes. You can add it to a piece of toast or use it when cooking eggs for a mild garlic flavor. You can use it however you would normally use butter for savory dishes, it just has some added flavor! 

WATCH ME HARVEST GARLIC SCAPES AND MAKE COMPOUND BUTTER

If video form is more your style, be sure to check out my videos that take you through the entire process from start to finish.

HOW TO HARVEST GARLIC SCAPES

In this video I’ll show you exactly what a garlic scape looks like, how to know when it’s ready, and how to harvest them.

HOW TO GROW GARLIC

You can’t grow garlic scapes without growing garlic! It’s one of my absolute favorite crops to grow and harvest, and when done right it can be grown in both spring and fall. We eat a lot of garlic at my house, so being able to grow my own, and store it for months on end has been a great experience for us.

HOW TO MAKE GARLIC SCAPE COMPOUND BUTTER

Join me in my garden and kitchen as I take you along for the entire process of making garlic scape compound butter, start to finish. I wish you could smell through the screen because it’s sooo good!

More recipes to use for your garden harvest

Easy Tomato Pie with Sweet Corn and Homemade Herb Crust – Full of fresh tomatoes and herbs, this recipe is bursting with all of the flavors of the summer garden. 

Hot Pepper Jelly This is one of my absolute favorite recipes from my summer garden. It’s a staple here in the south, and makes me nostalgic for when my mama and aunts made it growing up.

Quick and Simple Fermented Radishes– Fermented radishes are a great way to use radishes from the garden and get immune and gut health benefits from the fermentation. 

Fermented Pickles with Onions– What could be better than pickles? Fermented pickles! This recipe gives you the added gut health and immune benefits. 

Garlic Scape Compound Butter Printable Recipe