For the Love of All Things Garlic!

Some might accuse me of using too much garlic in my cooking. In my humble opinion, there can never be too much.

Pressed, sliced, chopped, blended, roasted, fried, pickled...you name it, I'll do it to garlic, and then eat it. When a recipe calls for a mere one clove of garlic, I automatically think, "One clove? Okay, I'll put in one head."

Granted, there are dishes where garlic shouldn't overpower or compete with other flavors, in which case I stick to the number of cloves called for in the recipe (a potato leek soup, for instance, should use garlic sparingly so as not to overwhelm the delicate flavor of the leek). If the dish calls for raw garlic, I also tend to use it sparingly (though I do make some mean garlicky hummus where I sometimes use both raw and roasted together).

For a heartier dish, however, when garlic can really shine, I'll put in a whole head. Take, for instance, my super-easy meaty garlicky marinara. I use at least this much garlic for one recipe:

Is that a lot? Naaahh. When peeled and pressed, I turn it into this:

And here's how I make my simple weeknight version of meat marinara:

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Weeknight Meaty Garlicky Marinara

Ingredients:

1 head of garlic, peeled and pressed (or less, if you're scared)

1 small onion, peeled and chopped fine

3/4 pound of lean ground beef (I use 85-90% lean)

1 - 15oz can of tomato puree

1 - 15oz can of diced tomatoes

a pinch of crushed red pepper, more or less

a small handful of fresh basil, chopped, or a teaspoon dried

1 teaspoon sugar

olive oil

salt

your favorite pasta, cooked per package directions

Directions:

In a cold, medium saucepan, add about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add all of the garlic and sprinkle the teaspoon of sugar on top of the garlic. Set the pan over medium-low heat and let the garlic slowly cook with the sugar, stirring it frequently. This is a technique I learned from America's Test Kitchen. It's a cheater's way to roast garlic quickly for one-pot stovetop meals. The sugar caramelizes and brings out the garlic's sweetness. The sugar also helps cut some of the acidity that canned tomatoes can have.

After about 10 minutes, the garlic will be sticky and straw-colored. Add the onions and sauté until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Now crank the heat to med-high and add the meat. Break it up with the cooking utensil you're using. Make sure the garlic and onion are thoroughly mixed into the meat. Season with a bit of salt. When the meat is cooked through, add all the tomatoes and crushed red pepper. At this point, if you're using dried basil, add that now too. If you're using fresh, save it for the end. Simmer the sauce for about 10-15 minutes, taste for seasoning, and it's done!

Oh, somewhere in there you'll have cooked up some of your favorite pasta to go with it, too.

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It's an easy, satisfying weeknight dinner that shouldn't take more than an hour to prepare from start to finish. I also have a version where I roast fresh tomatoes from the garden and turn it into a great marinara. But that's another post.

Salute!