Gifts from the Kitchen: Juana's Roasted Garlic in Oil

The first time I met Juana we made Argentinian food in her kitchen, and she sent me home with two beautiful jars of roasted garlic in oil.

She makes the garlic in big batches, stopping at Costco to buy not one, but two of their huge sacks of garlic. First she cuts off the tops of each garlic bulb and puts the bulbs on a baking sheet, pouring a little olive oil over each one.

Then she bakes them in a 400 degree oven for about a half hour, until they are soft when speared with knife. Once they’ve cooled, she peels the garlic and drops the cloves into a huge jar, filling it with enough oil to cover them completely.

She stores the garlic in the fridge, where it will last for weeks, adding it to a myriad of dishes and giving it in small jars, with a sprig of rosemary and a dozen or so peppercorns, as gifts. (Juana told me to keep my jars in the fridge as well.)

A gift of food is a gift of love, and Juana’s great dexterity in the kitchen is matched only by her generosity of spirit.

–Tracy Schneider