Hardneck garlic sends up a seed pod on a central stalk called a "scape" and whether you have every eaten one of these or not, they are eff'n DELICIOUS! They taste like a garlic flavored green onion, you will see them in some high end restaurants from time to time, and if you are lucky enough to find them in May/June at your local farmer's market, scarf them up and enjoy a treat!
Scape on a not-quite-ready to pick music garlic plant:
A nice clutch of freshly cut scapes, these can be eaten raw, but better sauteed in a little olive oil and stirred into Asian style stir fry, they can be coated in Italian salad dressing, or olive oil and lemon pepper and tossed on a hot grill until crispy:
Today I pickled some with a couple of dried Red Caribbean/Scotch Bonnet peppers in the jar with them, should be interesting:
And here is a recipe for the pickled garlic scapes: http://localfoods.about.com/od/condi...Scapes.htm?p=1