As we inch ever closer to the height of harvesting from our gardens, we all share in one abundant problem: what to do with all the damn sage. Bitter and overwhelming when raw—unless plunged into the cavity of a chicken or bundled into a smudge stick for a weepy girlfriend, we are really left to frying or, well, frying sage in order to make it palatable.
I have a lot of sage on my hands this season but this year, I am leaning on the Italians (both considering my time in Sicily this May and the Mimi Thorisson’s tome, Old World Italian) to not let any of these pungent, hearty leaves go to waste.
What follows are five nights of recipes that feature sage. THE MAIN SAGE, if you will. I don’t expect you to eat sage every day. Dear god, no. I mean, you could do a vertical tasting menu and wow the plants off your sage-loving friends, but I think you can also spread these recipes out during the next month or so and avoid the oft felt, but seldom articulated, sage fatigue.
Day 1:
Salvia Fritta: make a batter with beer (or Prosecco) and flour and salt. Dredge leaves into batter and fry. Sprinkle with salt while still hot. EAT THEM IMMEDIATELY.
Day 2:
Scaloppine alla Perugina: scroll down once you hit the link. I promise the recipe is there.
Day 3:
Bone Marrow Risotto with Crispy Sage: follow the recipe and then crisp up some sage in EVOO and let it drain and cool on a paper towel. Salt it. Crumble it onto the risotto. Serve it with chilly Prosecco.
Day 4:
Sage and Walnut Tagliatelle: I like this dish with dollops of chevre. (Shout out to the now defunct Domino Mag from this Mimi classic.)
Day 5:
Fried Squash Blossoms (FSB): with sage and saffron rice. I don’t have a recipe because I made it up, so I will give ingredients and a method.
FSB
Serves 4
Prep:
Preheat to 350 degrees
Ingredients:
8 Squash Blossoms
1/2C. Rice
Sage (handful)
1C Chicken Stock
Saffron threads (a nice pinch)
One egg beaten with a splash of water
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Herbed Breadcrumbs (breadcrumbs with fresh chopped parsley or chives)
Tomato Sauce (a thinner, simple sauce, you can buy it or make it quickly)
Parm (grated right before serving)
Method:
Clean and prep your blossoms.
Cook your rice with chicken stock and saffron.
Salt and pepper to taste your rice (post cooking).
Gently stuff your blossoms with rice tossed in some EVOO.
Roll your stuffed blossoms in egg and then the breadcrumbs.
Place them on a baking sheet and bake them for 30-40 minutes, flipping once.
Plate tomato sauce in a cute little pool and stack two cooked blossoms and top with fresh-grated parm. Serve hot.
What I’ve been up to:
Cooking: kitchen sink vegetable orzo, soft boiled eggs with miso butter
Reading: To Show and to Tell; County Highway; Andrea Gibson poems
Listening: The Retrievals (S.2); Red Scare; Right Thing, Right Now
Watching: Roman Holiday; Arrested Development; Derry Girls
Thinking: Memoir craft; furniture assembly; horseshoe theory on steroids
Traveling to: MIRA EARTH STUDIOS (go now)