Healthy Living

For all you garlic lovers out there, is a book calledGarlic which fea- tures over 65 deliciously different ways to enjoy cooking with garlic.

Garlic grows as a bulb and the green shoots, often called garlic chives, are also delicious and give a milder ‘garlicky’ flavour than the bulb.

Garlic has many

health-giving

properties – it is antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, anti- septic and antiparasitic. As well as an array of vitamins and minerals, it contains a po- tent sulphur compound called allicin, which gives garlic its therapeutic properties.

These beautifully simple, yet tasty recipes are taken from Garlic – over 65 deliciously different ways to enjoy cooking with garlic by Jenny Linford. Pub- lished by Ry- land Peters & Small. IS- BN: 978 1 84975 707 2

Smoky garlic baba ghanoush Makes about 400g/14oz

Ingredients:

2 aubergines/ eggplants

2 smoked garlic cloves

Freshly squeezed juice of ½ lemon

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve n Salt To garnish:

1 tablespoon natural yoghurt

A pinch of ground sumac

Freshly chopped parsley

A foil-lined baking sheet

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200C (400F) gas 6. Place the aubergines/eggplants on a foil- lined baking sheet and roast in the pre- heated oven for 1 hour, turning over half- way through, until charred on all sides.

Place the hot aubergines/eggplants in a plastic bag – the steam will make the skin easier to peel off and set aside to cool.

Peel the roasted aubergines/eggplants and chop the flesh into chunks. Crush the smoked garlic with a pinch of salt into a paste. In a food processor, blend together the roast aubergines/eggplants, smoked garlic paste, lemon juice and olive oil into a smooth puree. Season with salt.

Place in a serving bowl and spoon over the yoghurt. Top with sumac, a little olive oil, add parsley and serve.

Spaghetti con aglio, olio e pepperoncinoServes 4

Ingredients:

450g/1lb spaghetti

150ml/2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

8 garlic cloves, finely chopped

6 pepperoncini (small Italian dried chilli / chilli peppers), chopped

6 tblsps finely chopped fresh parsley

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

Method:

Cook the spaghetti in a large pan of salt- ed, boiling water until it becomes al dente.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a small,

heavy-based

frying pan skillet. Add the garlic and pepperoncini and fry gently over a low heat, stirring often, until the garlic turns golden brown, taking care not to burn it. Set the garlic pepperoncini oil aside to infuse.

Once the spaghetti is cooked, drain and return to the saucepan. Gently reheat the oil and pour over the spaghetti, mixing well.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve at once with Parmesan cheese.