Who would’ve thought that taking something so pungent in its raw state and roasting it would produce such a sweet and nutty piece of heaven?? But let me tell you, once you pull those little pockets of decadence out the oven, your brain is going to start thinking of all the possibilities! From buttered toast to mashed potatoes to pasta to pizza … bring it!
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When my husband and I started dating, I decided to make my pan fried garlic stuffed meatballs (recipe coming soon!). Now, he ate every bite and complimented me several times, so you can imagine my surprise when I found out he THOUGHT he didn’t like garlic!!! I guess he just hadn’t eaten it the right way yet! All I could do was tell him that growing up in my momma’s house, I had never learned how to cook WITHOUT garlic, and I wasn’t starting now! I’m proud to say it didn’t take long to persuade his taste buds to the right side of garlic loving!
Jump to RecipeSo let’s get started, shall we?? First you want to make sure the garlic is as fresh as you can get it. Unless you’re growing it, you have to depend on the grocery store so don’t buy it until you’re ready to roast them. Older bruised garlic will not give you the taste you are looking for.
You’ll want to first cut the root end of the bulb off, about a 1/4″ or a little more should do. NOTE: If you cut the garlic bulb and find that a clove isn’t in the best condition, don’t throw the whole bulb away, just get rid of that one clove and proceed. Once the flesh of the garlic is exposed, remove the outer layers (not all of it) of ‘skin’ then drizzle your choice of extra virgin olive oil over the cloves and sprinkle with a small amount salt. It’s your preference to use either sea salt or table salt, they are basically the same thing at the end of the day.
At this point, you’ll place the bulbs on aluminum foil with the flesh side up then make a little packet (you may need to snipe the pointed end to have a flatter bottom). You want to make sure the foil is closed so that the steam stays inside or the cloves can dry out. Set the packets in an oven safe dish and place in the oven. You’ll cook these at 375˚ for about 45 minutes. The cook time might vary depending on the side of your cloves. I’ve gotten some that are a cluster of smaller cloves, that would obviously take less time than a bunch of larger cloves.
After you’ve removed the garlic from the oven, let the packets sit for about 15 minutes before opening. After the cloves have cooled off, find a way that works for you to remove the meat from the skins. These came out quite easily by just peeling the paper off but squeezing the bulb or using a paring knife works nicely as well.
You can store your roasted garlic in the fridge for 3-4 days in an airtight container or freeze. Using a food-saving machine with vacuum bags helps in so many ways and with this, it allows you to create that “all day in the oven” taste in a matter of minutes! I mash mine but you could also leave in cloves if you choose.
Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
- 2 bulbs whole garlic
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- Cutting at the root end of the garlic, cut off roughly ¼". Make sure all cloves are cut into so the oil and salt can penetrate the flesh of the garlic. Remove the outer skins but not all the way to the cloves.
- Placing the bulbs on aluminum foil with the flesh side up, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
- Close the foil tightly, place in an oven safe dish with the flesh side up, then bake at 375° for 45 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow foil packets to cool without opening for 15 minutes.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze.
Looks wonderful! I’d like a big plate of spaghetti to go with the roasted garlic.
Thanks so much! I just might have to cook a spaghetti now! 🙂