Ding.

The timer on the oven sings out and lets you know that it is time. Time to remove the roasted garlic.  Thankfully, you remember to stand back as you slowly open the oven door in a way that the wafting steam doesn’t blast you in the face. You close your eyes and breathe in. Deeply.  Is there anything that surpasses the heavenly smell of oven-roasted garlic? You see it in their faces as your family bounds into the kitchen, joy and anticipation dancing in their eyes. Excitedly they beg, what is that delicious smell?  You love to hear the giddy excitement in their voice, don’t you? You reach in to the oven with oversized mitts and inch the pan out slowly, almost ceremoniously, and place it softly on the stovetop.  They are gorgeous. The tops of the garlic gloves are bursting, ready for you to nudge them out of their little caves. And then, yes, the best is to come.  It is time to taste. Spread on warmly toasted bread; add to salad dressings or casseroles, or add to just about anything. Since you are the one who roasted them and created this sensual environment, it is only right that you get to lick your figures.

One.

By.

One.

Roasting garlic is one of the easiest things to do without a lot of work or effort and delivers wonderfully delicious results.

Take a head of garlic (or several) and peel off the papery skins of that the cloves are still intact yet are easily distinguished.

Take a knife and trim off the top of the head so that each clove is exposed.  You will want to do this for all the cloves, while keeping the head intact.  Place them in the tin foil and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.  Several teaspoons for each head are perfect.  Wrap up tightly in tin foil and back at 400 degrees between 40 to 60 minutes until they are soft.  Remove from oven.  Once they have cooled, take your fingers (or a spoon) and nudge each clove until they pop out.  I save them in a small mason jar and use them within a few weeks. You can freeze them for the future and add them to dishes like soups and casseroles.

Oh, are you having a disconnect with my tin foil method compared to the gorgeous photos of the garlic nestled up with my roasted chicken? 

Don’t be!  I took advantage of the cooking time and oven space and baked my tin foiled garlic in the oven while my chicken was baking (lower temperature but that just meant the garlic cooked for a bit longer).  When I removed the chicken from the oven it was such so stinking beautiful that I thought the garlic needed to snuggle with it.  It does look irresistible, doesn’t it?

If you are curious about the crème fraiche roasted chicken with herbs, I got the recipe from A KITCHEN IN FRANCE, A Year of Cooking in My Farmhouse by Mimi Thorisson.  It’s an awesome cookbook.

Happy eating with your senses.

Eat well, my friends. Eat well.
Lyndi