Roasted Garlic!
Maybe not enough to have it for breakfast, but garlic in the right quantities is the most marvellous additive.
It is a perfect test for a good date too (I could not be with a person who does not like it, because I do - and so he could not be with me either, I think!).
Roasted garlic especially. It deserves a standing ovation. It is pure, near-magical alchemy, raw and crunchy garlic becoming through oven heat, soft and sweet and perfect. Roasting is especially perfect for old heads of garlic one finds at the back of a cupboard. You can never have too much of it, and can it can even be frozen for a few months.
A head needs generally around 45 minutes, but is even better after 75 if you have the time. I recommend throwing a head or two in whenever your roasting or slow-cooking anything in the often.
The butter-soft cloves, with a few crackers or plain crisps, are a perfect aperitif (with sherry too, naturally). Beyond this little snack, they also go marvellously into sauces and dips and salad dressings.
After peeling away the papery outer layers of the head, leave the head itself intact. Trim a little, perhaps half a centimetre, off the head, to expose the tops of the cloves. Drizzle 1-3 teaspoons of olive oil over the exposed surface, letting it sink into the head. Wrap in aluminium foil - and in it goes!
It is a perfect test for a good date too (I could not be with a person who does not like it, because I do - and so he could not be with me either, I think!).
Roasted garlic especially. It deserves a standing ovation. It is pure, near-magical alchemy, raw and crunchy garlic becoming through oven heat, soft and sweet and perfect. Roasting is especially perfect for old heads of garlic one finds at the back of a cupboard. You can never have too much of it, and can it can even be frozen for a few months.
A head needs generally around 45 minutes, but is even better after 75 if you have the time. I recommend throwing a head or two in whenever your roasting or slow-cooking anything in the often.
The butter-soft cloves, with a few crackers or plain crisps, are a perfect aperitif (with sherry too, naturally). Beyond this little snack, they also go marvellously into sauces and dips and salad dressings.
After peeling away the papery outer layers of the head, leave the head itself intact. Trim a little, perhaps half a centimetre, off the head, to expose the tops of the cloves. Drizzle 1-3 teaspoons of olive oil over the exposed surface, letting it sink into the head. Wrap in aluminium foil - and in it goes!
22-25, F
