September 27th, 2008 Newsletter

Bardstown Road Farmers Market, Inc

Sarah’s Corner

From our friend Sarah Fritschner

When I was food editor, one regularly recurring question was about how to keep garlic. Many people, it sounds like, want to by a head and keep it for weeks or months.

 Farmers market shoppers know that garlic, like other foods, is a seasonal item, at its peak right now. “At its peak” means hard as a rock and so plump as to be nearly bursting out of its skin. Try buying garlic at the supermarket in February and you’ll see and feel the difference – green sprouts and shriveled, soft cloves hint that it has been months out of the ground. I still use it in that shape, but I know garlic at that stage is less than fabulous.

 If you’re buying garlic today you can keep it in a cool, dark place (but not the refrigerator) for a few months, perhaps, but it is still a living thing so it doesn't last forever.

Want to keep garlic a long time? You can stick it in the freezer, whole, or in cloves, peeled or not. I just stick the whole bulbs right on the shelf in the door for easy access. When it thaws, the pulp is soft but can still be used to sauté for tomato sauces and other dishes.

Roast garlic can also be frozen, or used today to season a wide range of foods.

To roast garlic, bake a whole bulb at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or so. It should be soft when you squeeze it. Cutting off the top to expose the cloves, and drizzling it with olive oil, will allow the garlic to brown, adding a different flavor. It also allows you to squeeze out the soft garlic a little easier. Remember a toaster oven will save energy. Or roast garlic while you have the oven heated for other reasons. Don't worry if the oven is set at 375 or 400; it'll just take a little less time to soften.

Roast garlic

Multiply the recipe by roasting as many heads of garlic as you like. The oil helps the garlic brown, which adds flavor, but it can be omitted. 

Roast garlic freezes well.

1 whole head garlic

1 or 2 teaspoons olive oil

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Slice off top of garlic head so the cloves are just exposed. Rub with a touch of olive oil and turn upside down on a pie plate or other small pan. Roast 45 minutes or until the cloves are soft when you squeeze on the bulb. Remove from oven. When garlic is comfortable to touch, squeeze garlic from cloves into a dish. Or serve the cloves to diners and let them squeeze and spread as they wish.

Use soft garlic as a spread on bread (top with cheese and heat, if desired), in potato and other casseroles, in salad dressings, whipped into pan sauces (extremely easy and delicious), among other uses. It is also great spread on pizza before (or instead) of tomato sauce.

Ronni Lundy’s roast garlic grits

Former Louisville resident and cookbook author Ronni Lundy now lives in Albuquerque but was on this side of the Mississippi last week to visit friends and family around Asheville. As we sat and discussed the fortunes and misfortunes of the world, I asked her for her best garlicky recipe. She mentioned this one, which comes from her book, “Butterbeans and Blackberries,” and which she’s made often with Blue Moon garlic.

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup stone-ground grits (such as Weisenberger)

1 large head roast garlic

2 eggs

½ cup milk

Generously grease a 1 ½-quart casserole. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a heavy saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to boil with salt. Slowly pour in grits, stirring all the while to prevent lumping. Turn the heat down, so the grits cook at a simmer. Cook, stirring frequently for 15 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the grits soften some.

Remove the pulp from the garlic by lightly squeezing each clove.  Place the pulp in a blender with eggs and milk and pulse a few times (some of the garlic will still be in chunks, that’s ok).

Add ½ cup grits to the egg mixture and blend again. Slowly pour egg mixture into remaining grits, stirring constantly as you do, until the mixture is evenly mixed. Pour the grits into the casserole and bake 50 minutes, until they are set and golden. Serve warm. Any leftovers may be chilled and fried the next day. Serves 6.