I had many times encountered Roasted garlic as an ingredient in many recipes, but always substituted this with mashed or minced garlic. Until one day I finally decided to see what it was all about.
Garlic when roasted becomes a deliciously creamy paste, that has a deep flavor without the bite that so many people hate about it, and no garlic aftertaste!
It is so easy and simple that I now roast many heads at a time and save them in a glass container in my refrigerator so I will always have it on hand whenever I need it.
So I start with 5 to 6 heads of garlic, but you can make more or less depending on how much you will use it. I cut off the top 1/4 of the garlic heads to expose as many cloves as possible.
Then I place them in a glass oven safe dish, with the cut side up and I season them with salt and pepper.
Pour plenty of olive oil, making sure that each clove is soaked (don't be stingy). Finally Sprinkle with fresh thyme (or dry) and cover dish with foil paper.
Roast in your 400 degree heated oven about 1 hour, until the cloves are soft and golden. You will notice some cloves will actually start to protrude out.
Let stand for a few minutes, but don't let them get cold, as they are easier to handle when warm.
Remove all the cloves by hand with with the help of a small spoon, alternatively you can also squeeze it all out.
At this point you can spread it on a piece of toast like butter and it is delicious!
If you are not going to use right away, then transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate.
It will keep well for about 2 weeks. Enjoy!
Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
5-6 heads of garlic
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (or dry Dominican oregano)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using a serrated knife, slice off top quarter of garlic heads, exposing as many cloves as possible. Arrange garlic heads, cut side up, in an 8- or 9-inch square baking dish (make sure garlic heads sit flat).
Season garlic with salt and pepper and
sprinkle with thyme. Slowly pour oil over each head, letting it soak into and
around cloves. Cover dish tightly with foil and roast until cloves are golden,
completely soft, and begin to protrude slightly from skins, about 1 hour. Let stand
until cool enough to handle.
From the bottom up, squeeze each head to push
out cloves (peel skins from any completely enclosed cloves). Transfer garlic
and cooking oil to an airtight container and refrigerate.
