Garlic Salt and Other Kitchen Horrors

Okay, so I know my friends laugh at me for being so adamant in my distaste for garlic salt, but really people, this stuff is gross!  Do not, I repeat, DO NOT ever purchase this nasty excuse for a seasoning.  Not only does it not have the delicious and versatile qualities of real garlic, but it quite literally leaves a bad taste in your mouth.  You end up using a lot of it because it has insufficient flavor to actually season anything, then everything turns out salty, with a rancid garlic flavor, ruining perfectly good food.  It is truly sad.

If you really want a hint of garlic, just use the real thing.  It is really cheap, lasts a long time in your cupboard, and is not much extra work, especially when compared to the delicious results.  Personally, I put fresh garlic in almost everything.  It is healthy, and adds great flavor  -- why, oh why, must people spoil their food with nasty garlic salt??  I equate the presence of garlic salt in the kitchen to people who keep ramen noodles stocked in the cupboard, eat canned peas, Kraft singles, and might heat up their beanies and weenies in the crock-pot.  In essence, they are the American processed food eaters and have not yet learned that fresh ingredients reign supreme! (this last statement should be read in the tone of Iron Chef, "whose cuisine shall reign supreme?!?") 

So, use fresh ingredients, please!!  Not only are they tastier, but they are better for you, and usually cheaper compared to prepared processed foods.  Rid your kitchen of these major offenders:

• Garlic powder
• Onion Powder
• Canned peas (frozen peas are great, but canned are gross!)
• American cheese singles
• Powdered beverage mixes
• Flavored cooking spray (cooking spray is a great convenience, but just go with plain)
• Vienna sausages or other similar processed links (why would you buy this when there are so many other more delicious options out there?)

I will probably add more to this list later, but in the meantime, to prove the deliciousness of real garlic, try out this roasted garlic recipe.  When I was a kid, we used to go to this restaurant that served roasted garlic with fresh crusty bread, and we practically could have made a meal of just that!  So, we figured out how to recreate it at home:

Roasted Garlic

Ingredients:

Several heads of garlic

Olive oil to drizzle

Salt and pepper (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Keeping each head of garlic intact, peel away some of the papery skin from the outside of the bulb. (Don't go too crazy peeling them, or else they won't hold together)
   
3. Cut away the top of the head of garlic, exposing the tops of each clove of garlic in the bulb.
4. Place heads of garlic in a pan (muffin pans work well), with the sliced side facing up.
5. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper, if desired
6. Cover the garlic with foil or an oven-proof lid.
7. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until garlic is soft and brown.
8. When cooled slightly, you will be able to use your fingers or other implements to squeeze the soft roasted garlic out of it's skin.  It can be spread directly on warm crusty bread, or mashed and used in dips, sauces, and other recipes for a great rich garlicy flavor.