Cooking Tips: Roasted Garlic

Blaine and Laney got me this delightful Food Network 2011 Calendar that has recipes or tips for every day. So expect to see Hints & Tips as the year goes on. :)

image from http://www.spicelines.com/

Love the sweet flavor of rasted garlic, but don't have the time to rast it in the oven? Place a dry skillet over medium heat.  Add unpeeled garlic cloves.  Cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until soft (time will vary depending on the size of the cloves), shaking the pan occasionally to avoid schorching.  Allow the cloves to cool, then slip them out of their skins.  Presto! Roasted garlic.  It's a great companion to root vegetables and fantastic on toasted bread for bruschetta or in salad dressings.

Seasoning Mix Packets

These are something we made at our RS Activity. For Christmas, I'm going to give my co-workers a collection of "mixes"--some of these and some of the cakes in a mug. For assembly, we put the dry ingredients in the little baggies, then stapled the instruction label to it.

RANCH DRESSING

In the bag:
1 ½ tsp onion salt
1 ½ tsp black pepper
1 ½ tsp Accent salt
On the tag:
Mix contents of package with:
2 c mayo
1 c buttermilk
Mix well. Refrigerate overnight before serving as desired. Keep refrigerated.

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SPAGHETTI SAUCE
In the bag:
1 Tbsp basil
1 ½ tsp oregano
1 tsp garlic
On the tag:
Brown ½ lb ground beef. Drain fat and add:
1 can condensed tomato soup
8 oz tomato sauce
1 can sliced mushrooms
Stir in contents of package and simmer for 15 min.

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VEGETABLE DIP

In the bag:
1 Tbsp dried onion
1 Tbsp parsley
1 tsp Bon Appetit*
1 tsp dill weed
*Bon Appetit is put out by McCormick. If you don’t have/find, substitute equal parts onion powder and celery salt
On the tag:
Mix contents of package with:
1 c sour cream
½ c mayo
1/8 tsp lemon juice
Mix well and refrigerate overnight. Serve with fresh vegetables. Keep refrigerated.

Taco Seasoning

This is better than the store bought - no preservatives, etc.  And you can control the heat. 

12 parts chili powder
1 part garlic powder
1 part onion powder
1 part crushed red pepper flakes or 1/2 part cayenne pepper
1 part dried oregano
2 parts paprika
6 parts ground cumin
4 parts black pepper
4 parts sea salt
 
I made it without the salt and couldn't tell the difference.  That's saying something since I LOVE salt!