Zesty Roasted Garlic Bread Recipes

ROASTED GARLIC BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Slice the tops off of garlic heads so the tip of each clove is exposed. Place garlic on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until garlic is soft, about 30 minutes.
• Set the oven to broil. Slice the loaf of bread in half horizontally, and place cut-side up on a baking sheet.
• Squeeze the cloves of garlic from their skins into a medium bowl. Stir in the butter, parsley, and Parmesan cheese until well blended. Spread onto the cut sides of the bread.
• Broil bread until toasted, about 5 minutes.

THE WORLD'S BEST ROASTED GARLIC BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, stir together the water, yeast, and sugar. Set aside for about ten minutes, or until foamy.
• Add the salt, garlic powder, and 1 tablespoon olive oil to the yeast mixture and stir to combine.
• If using a mixer, use the dough hook attachment and add the flour about 1/2 cup at a time. Continuing adding flour until the dough pulls away from the edge of the bowl and is just a little sticky to touch. Knead with the dough hook on low speed for about five minutes. To knead by hand, stir in flour 1/2 cup at a time until it becomes to difficult to stir. Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and continue to knead in the flour a bit at a time, until barely sticky to the touch.
• Oil a large bowl with a little olive oil. Add the dough to the bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place to rise until doubled, about an hour to an hour and a half.
• While the dough is rising, roast the garlic. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Arrange the garlic cloves on a piece of foil large enough to wrap around them. Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil over the cloves and wrap the foil tightly around them. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until cloves are just soft. Roughly dice the cloves.
• After dough has risen, punch it down. Move one oven rack to the bottom of the oven, another to the middle. Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C). Lightly oil and flour a baking sheet.
• On a lightly floured surface, knead the garlic cloves into the dough. Form the dough into a loaf on the baking sheet. Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes to an hour.
• Once risen, lightly sprinkle the top with flour. Using a sharp knife, make three diagonal slits in the loaf.
• Place an empty rimmed baking sheet on the bottom rack in the oven. Place the baking sheet with the shaped dough on the middle rack. Before closing the oven door, pour 1/2 cup water onto the empty sheet pan on the bottom rack. Close the oven door quickly to trap the steam. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.

ROASTED SWEET GARLIC, BREAD AND ALMOND SOUP

Steps:

• I'm not quite sure where I got the inspiration for this recipe - I think it was actually when I was making bread one day and I incorporated some really sweet caramelized garlic and almonds into a focaccia. There's a slightly Spanish feel to the main ingredients - think of it as putting a bunch of old friends together and having a good party! My mother's initial reaction was, 'My God, that's a lot of garlic, you'll stink!' but don't let the amount put you off, as when garlic is roasted in its skin the pungent flavour is replaced by a jammy sweetness which is divine.
• Roast the garlic cloves in a preheated oven at 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4 for around half an hour until soft to the touch. Meanwhile, take a large pot and slowly fry the white onion in 4 tablespoons of olive oil for about 10 minutes until really soft and translucent. Add the cream and the stock, bring back to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes, awaiting your garlic. Remove the garlic from the oven and allow to cool slightly before squeezing out all the sweet, golden paste. Whisk this into the soup. Discard the garlic skins.
• Remove the crusts from your ciabatta, rip up the bread into small pieces and throw into the soup. Add the sherry vinegar, then allow the soup to simmer for 5 more minutes. Whiz it until smooth in your food processor with your toasted almonds. Season nicely to taste and serve in big bowls sprinkled with some orange segments, torn up coriander and mint, and drizzled with a good lug of extra virgin olive oil.
• Try this: You can eat this cold in the summer - it's obviously going to be thick, which I think is a nice thing, but you can thin it with a little milk or stock if you want to.
• And this: You may want to big up the sherry vinegar to give it that twang you get with a Spanish gazpacho soup.
• Or this: There's a similar recipe from Spain where sliced white grapes are added to the soup - this contrasts really well with the garlic, so give it a go. A handful will do. Nice when eaten both hot and cold.