Mmmm…Roasted Garlic. It’s pretty much culinary gold, and considering how incredibly easy it is, I’m surprised more people don’t do it. When you roast garlic it becomes caramelized, sweeter, more mild, and dare I say – more mouthwatering than garlic already is.
The fab thing about roasting garlic is that it’s flexible. Chances are you use your oven at least once a week, right? Tossing a ball of foil-wrapped garlic in there won’t take up any more space than you already have available and you’re using your oven anyway- why not get something extra out of it?! You can roast it anywhere between 300-400 degrees, so if you’re cooking a casserole, or a roast, or whatever, just toss it in there. It will get more caramelized or less caramelized depending on the oven temp and the amount of time it’s in there, but it’s super easy to eyeball. And seriously, a 3 year old could do this. Well, maybe not. 3 year olds probably shouldn’t be putting things in hot ovens. But they could totally do it in an Easy Bake.
How to Roast Garlic
You need:
Garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Foil
1. Take a whole head of garlic. It’s even okay if you’ve used some of the cloves already. You just want the remaining cloves to still be attached to the base. Peel off any excess paper around the edges. You’ll want the cloves themselves to still be in their papers but if you’ve got a lot of excess around the edges just pull them off.
2. Cut the top part off like in the picture below. Just enough to expose the cloves- like a little less than 1/3 of the head. Place the cut head on a piece of foil.
3. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt and drizzle with a couple teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. I drizzle some on and wait for it to soak down into the garlic and then pour on some more.
5. Toss that bad boy in the oven, directly on the rack. If it’s the only thing in your oven, bake at 400 degrees for about 30-40 minutes. But like I said, if your cooking something else at a lower temp, that’s cool too, it may just take a little longer.The foil ball should feel soft when it’s done. (I shouldn’t have to write this next sentence but I will.) Use a towel or a potholder to check the softness. And don’t sue me if you forget.
When it’s done, take out of the oven and let cool for a minute. When you open up your cute little package you’ll have this glorious, soft, caramelized, yummy stuff.
The soft cloves will just pop right out of there. You can either squeeze them out, or use a little fork to pop them out.
Just use a fork to mash up the cloves into a paste. It adds a mild garlic flavor to so many things. It will keep for a week or more in your fridge in an air-tight container. You can also freeze it and just grab a spoonful as you need it.
One of my favorite ways to eat roasted garlic is fresh out of the oven,
rubbed onto warm crusty bread.
Sprinkled with fresh Parmesan? Even better.
We just ate it on toasted baquette slices and it was heavenly.
So. What else can you do with roasted garlic? Just off the top of my head:
-Spread on crostini before topping with Bruschetta
-Add to mashed potatoes
-Spread on bread (makes a great appetizer)
-Add to pasta dishes
-Soups
-Sauces
-Add to mayo
-Use in salad dressings
-Add to bread dough just before kneading
-Use in egg dishes
Seriously so many things.
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