Caramelized Garlic Tart

 Seriously, if you don’t have one of Ottolenghi’s cookbooks you need to stop what your doing go to Amazon and buy one. This dish is from Plenty – I made one minor change, I grated the Gouda. This dish is rich so serve it with a healthy salad or veggie side. The flavors are unbelievable – it is worth every single mouth watering calorie. 

Ingredients
1 sheet of puffed pastry, defrosted
3 medium heads garlic, peeled
1 TBSP olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 c water
3/4 TBSP sugar
1 tsp rosemary, chopped
1 tsp thyme leaves
4 1/2 oz cherve, broken into chunks
4 1/4 oz goat gouda, shredded
2 eggs
3.5 oz half and half
3.5 oz creme fraich
Pepper

Roll out pastry to fit an 11 inch fluted tart pan. Line the pan with the pastry and fold and trim any excess. place a piece of parchment over the pastry and fill withbpie weights or dried beans. Chill for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350. Place the tart in then oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the weights and paper and bake 5 – 10 more minutes until golden. Remove and set aside.

Place garlic in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and blanch for 3 minutes. Drain and return to pan with olive oil. Fry the garlic cloves on high heat for 3 – 4 minutes until they start to brown. Add water and balsamic bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add sugar, rosemary, thyme and 1/4 tsp salt. Simmer over medium flame for 10 minutes until garlic is coated in a thick syrup. Set aside.

Whisk together eggs, half and half, creme fraiche and pepper. Set aside.

To assemble, evenly distributed gouda, cherve and garlic. Carefully pour egg mixture over the cheese and garlic.

Reduce oven to 325 and bake for 30 – 45 minutes, until golden brown.

Serves 8.

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Bavette Steak with Garlic Butter Sauce

Bavette steak is one of those cuts that is hard to find, if you can’t find it use flank steak instead. Let the steak marinade for at least an hour and be sure to top it with the garlic thyme butter.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 to 2 lbs. bavette steak or flank steak
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 tsp salt and pepper
2 tablespoons butter
1 garlic clove, minced
Leaves from 3 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped

Put steak in a resealable plastic bag with olive oil and shallot. Spread mixture evenly. Seal bag and chill until ready to cook, at least 1 hour and up to 2 days ahead.

Heat grill to high. Bring steak up room temp for at least 20 minutes, then remove from bag, scraping off shallots, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, turning once, until done, 8 to 10 min for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 10 min.

Melt butter in a small frying pan, then add garlic and thyme and cook until simmering and fragrant, 2 minutes. Pour warm butter mixture over steak and slice thinly.

Serves 6 – 8.

Garlic Noodles with Green Onions

These are so tasty and quick, perfect for a busy weeknight meal.

Ingredients:
7 oz dry Chinese noodles or spaghetti
2 tablespoons butter
1 c chopped green onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBSP brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
1 TBSP oyster sauce

Boil a large pot of water and cook the noodles according to package instructions.

In a 12 inch skillet over medium-high heat and add the butter.
When the butter is sizzling and bubbling, add the garlic. Fry for 1 minute until very fragrant, but be careful not to let the garlic burn. Add the brown sugar, soy sauce, green onions and oyster sauce and stir well to mix. Add the noodles and toss well to get the sauce evenly distributed throughout the noodles.

Serves 2.

Garlic Chicken

Another winner from Patricia Wells’ Bistro Cookbook. It is perfect for a nice Sunday dinner. For this one I bought pre peeled garlic.

Ingredients:
1 chicken, broken down and salt and peppered
Salt and pepper
2 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP butter
40 cloves of garlic
1/2 c white wine
1/2 c chicken stock

Heat oil and butter in a large pot with a lid. Cook chicken until nicely browned on each side. Remove chicken, add garlic and cook 10 minutes, stir to brown. Add chicken on top of garlic, add wine and stock. Cook 20 minutes covered until juices run clear.

Serves 8.

Garlic Fried Tomatoes

Yet another winner from Plenty! Supper easy and tasty!

Ingredients:
3 large garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 a small hot chilli, finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 large, ripe but firm tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 TBSP olive oil
Sea salt and pepper

Combine garlic, peppers and parsley in a small bowl.

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium low heat. Add tomatoes and cook about 2 minutes, flip and top with a little of the garlic mixture. Cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Serves 4.

Garlicky Grilled Chicken

This is the best chicken ever! Garlic, grilled and juicy!

Ingredients:
12 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
Juice of 2 lemons
1/3 c olive oil
1/4 c parsley, chopped
8 boneless chicken thighs

Coming all ingredients in a ziplock bag and marinade overnight, turning several times.

Cook on a hot grill for 3 – 4 minutes per side.

Serves 4.

Garlic Scape Pesto

This is not for the faint of heart or vampires – this is one garlicky pesto! It is great with pasta, just use a few TBSP.

Ingredients:
1 c garlic scapes, chopped
1/2 c olive oil
2 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until almost smooth.

Herbed Rack of Lamb

This is a super simple and tasty lamb dish!

Ingredients:
1 TBSP fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tsp Thyme, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBSP olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 rack of lamb, frenched

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine herbs, oil and garlic in a small bowl. Salt and pepper the rack, rub with herb mixture. Place fat side up on a baking sheet. Bake for 35 -40 minutes until 145 for rate.

Remove from oven, let rest 5 minutes, then slide.

Serves 2.

Lentils & Spinach

This was influenced by a recipe I found in Eating Well. I had some roasted garlic so I used that to give it a really deep layer of flavor. This is an easy one pot, weeknight meal. You can easily double this to serve more people. Service it with some nice crusty bread.

Ingredients:
4 cloves roasted garlic, minced
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 TBSP tomato paste
2 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
2 c water
1/2 c lentils (I had orange on hand)
4 c spinach or other greens
Salt and pepper

Heat oil in Dutch oven, add garlic and pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute over medium heat, add tomato paste and rosemary cook for another minute stirring to blend. Add water and lentil reduce heat to low, partially cover and cook for 40 minutes.

Remove lid and stir in spinach, cook for 5 minutes or so until wilted.

Serves 2.

Garlic Walnut Pasta

This dish is not for folks with food issues – I call it a triple threat cos it’s got gluten, dairy and nuts – the garlic makes it special!

Ingredients:
4 – 6 cloves garlic, green germ removes
1 c walnuts, toasted
8 oz creme fraiche
10 oz of pasta

Cook pasta according to package.

Toss nuts and garlic in a processor and finely chop. Add creme and pulse to combine.

Reserve a cup of pasta water. Then drain pasta, toss with sauce adding a little water if too thick.

Serves 4.