ANGEL HAIR PASTA
The great Emeril Lagasse tosses fiddleheads with angel hair pasta. Blanch I pound fiddleheads. Boil 1 pound pasta, 3 to 5 minutes, in the same water In a skillet, saute fiddleheads in 3 tablespoons olive oil with 2 green onions (thinly sliced) and 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Add drained pasta to the skillet, so it can soak up all those flavors, for 2 minutes. Season to taste and top with Parmesan. (Think also about topping with paprika and/or cayenne).
SAUTEED
Cook fiddleheads in a pot of boiling water; salted, for 7 to 10 minutes. Drain. Saute fiddleheads on medium-high heat in a skillet with olive oil and garlic.
TART
Quiches and tarts are rightfully making a comeback. Once you perfect a recipe, you can add in almost any seasonal vegetable. We like the decadent, rich, classic— and definitely French—Madame Quiche recipe featured on epicurious.com. Add sauteed fiddleheads to the crust before adding the custard.
FIDDLEHEAD SAFFRON SOUP
The Food Network offers this simple yet elegant interpretation. Boil 4 cups chicken stock with 1/8 teaspoon crushed saffron. Turn off heat. Beat together two egg yolks with 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Whisk a ladleful of the hot stock over the yolk mixture. Repeat. Add yolk mixture to broth. Stir in ¼ cup cream. Add sauteed fiddleheads (see instructions this page). Gently reheat. (Don’t boil, it will curdle.)
