Appy hour will not be a happy hour if the host is stressed out making too many complicated things all at once. No homemade appetizer can be simpler or more stress-free than roasted garlic. It’s delicious and oh-so-easy to make. It’s perfect paired with crusty bread and it’s great for entertaining because it’s homemade but you don’t have to be in the kitchen for hours. Roasting garlic mellows the flavor and brings out the sweetness. Your house will smell fabulous too. Pour yourself a glass of wine, and enjoy creating your own roasted garlic by following the recipe below.

Roasted Garlic
(v/gf)
makes one head of garlic

Ingredients:
1 head of garlic
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/8 teaspoon of pepper

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place the garlic in the center of a square of aluminum foil. Cut 1/4 off the top of the garlic bulb exposing the top of the sections. Drizzle the garlic bulb with with EVOO then sprinkle with salt and pepper, enclose it tightly in the foil and place it directly in the center of the the oven rack. You can bake multiple bulbs at a time, wrapped together. Bake for 40 minutes until the garlic is golden brown and the cloves are tender. Serve warm with crusty bread and small utensils for getting each clove out of the garlic bulb. Spread directly on bread with a knife.

mNote:
Experiment with different flavors by adding an 1/8 of a teaspoon of assorted minced herbs like rosemary, thyme, sage or chives, alone or in any combination.