Julia Child Method of Preparing Garlic

Julesong's Note:

I didn't learn this method by reading it any of Julia's books, but rather by watching her show. Some of my earliest memories are of sitting with my mother as a little girl, watching Julia on the television. I'd even thought for the longest time that Mom had named me after her! (It wasn't until a couple of years ago that I found out differently, but I still think of my name as Julia's tribute.) I recently went to the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington DC and was delighted to discover her kitchen preserved there - I spent a very, very long time just standing there, soaking in as much of her as I could. So, whenever you need garlic in a recipe and you want it nice and soft and oh-so-flavorful, prepare it this way!

• Total Time: 35 mins
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 1 head

• 1 head garlic
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt, to taste (optional)

Directions:

1. Remove all the cloves of garlic from the head.
2. Take a smallish saucepan and heat to boiling about a cup of water; add the cloves of garlic and simmer for about 1 minute- drain, peel the garlic (which should be softish and should peel easily) and set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, melt the butter together with the olive oil over medium heat.
4. Reduce the temperature low, then add the peeled garlic cloves to the butter mixture; stir well.
5. Saute slowly on lowest heat until tender and golden, at least 20 minutes (but it can take as long as 30, depending on your stove), stirring and checking occasionally to make sure they do not burn.
6. Remove from heat, drain, and use in whatever recipe you'd like- I enjoy salting them to taste and spreading them on crisp crackers at this point!

Reviews

[Sass Smith]

This was quite good, but I made the mistake of making it with elephant garlic...so it was a little bitter. Next time I'll try regular garlic and see if that's sweeter.