Kitchen Essentials ~ Garlic

In my mind, there isn't anything much better than ... (drumroll).... Garlic!


I. Love. Garlic.


.... do they make t-shirts that say that?... They should.  Whoever "they" may be. :)


Here are a few ESSENTIAL tips I've picked up over the years about Garlic.


1.  First and foremost, always buy garlic fresh.  Not, the jarred mush at the store.  If I can convince you of nothing else, this is the most important.  Who knows how long that garlic has been sitting in that jar, or worse yet, what has been added to it to keep it from going brown.
The good news??.... preparing fresh garlic takes about 1 minute, and is SUPER easy, as you will see if you keep reading :)

courtesy of pdphoto.org

2.  When buying fresh garlic, there's a couple things to look for.
Be sure that the head you bring home is nice and firm, with the cloves firmly in place.  Don't buy the ones that look dry, separated, and peeling.  Nor do you want any green shoots growing out the top.


3.  Mincing garlic becomes very easy and quick when you use this helpful tip:  Once you have the skin off, which can be done by lightly pounding down on it with the palm of your hand or the side of a large knife (don't cut yourself), get out your microplane or fine grater.  Grate away, right into your pan or dish!!  And that's it!  **Some graters may be too fine for garlic.  They come in differing sizes.  In this case you want a medium grate.

4.  How do you get the garlic smell off your hands?  There's a much better way than scrubbing with soap and water!  Simply rub your fingers on some stainless steel and the smell will mysteriously disappear :)


5.  Lastly, try a new way to prepare garlic, and add a TON of natural sweetness and complexity to your dishes ~  Roast your garlic.  I like to roast whole heads by simply cutting off the top of the head, keeping the rest in tact.  Then, drizzle the exposed top cloves with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Wrap tighlty in olive oil, and throw in the oven at 350 or 375 for 30-45 minutes.  Let it cool slightly.  Then, squeeze out the soft, lusciously sweet and mellow cloves.
The other option is to separate each clove out and place in a small baking dish, cover with olive oil, salt & pepper, and even a few red pepper flakes if you like.  Cover tightly with olive oil, and bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the cloves are soft.  The advantage to this method is you are left with garlic flavored olive oil.

SO good, in just about anything~ pastas, mashed potatoes.  Even on it's own, spread onto bread.  Use your imagination :)

So, there you have it.  The top 5 things that everyone should know about garlic (in my opinion :)

And remember... 2 garlics cancel eachother out.  So, if you are worried about what emits from your body later, be sure to have the others in the house eat it as well.  Problem solved :)

And, really, isn't garlic worth it?!...