Welcome back to the Fancy Fork! This month, we’re exploring the wonderful benefits and flavors of garlic through garlic confit.

What is garlic confit? Similar to tomato confit, garlic confit consists of roasting garlic in generous amounts of extra virgin olive oil at a low heat until it’s tender and lightly browned. When done correctly, the garlic confit cloves are soft, rich, sweet and flavorful without that bitterness in typical raw garlic. It adds great flavor to soups, pasta sauces, vinaigrettes, sandwiches, toasts, marinades, mashed potatoes and so much more!

What are the health benefits of garlic? Garlic is a long-known agent in boosting your body’s immune system, which is always a plus for this time of year. Garlic may also help reduce high blood pressure, reduce cholesterol levels, may help prevent cancer, as well as may help prevent Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Let’s just say, it’s packed with nutrition and antibiotic properties!

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

For the Garlic Confit:

• 1 cup garlic cloves (recommend pre-peeled)
• 4 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1 cup olive oil (or enough to cover the garlic cloves)

For the Sourdough Toast:

• prosciutto
• fresh burrata
• fig preserves
• honey (or hot honey)
• freshly chopped herbs (like basil or thyme)

Instructions

1. Add all the garlic confit ingredients to a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
2. Bring to a very low boil, and cook for 30-40 minutes, or until garlic is soft.
3. Toast the sourdough bread with olive oil on a griddle until golden brown on both sides.
4. On the crispy toast, add a few garlic cloves to spread about.
5. Slather a layer of fig jam.
6. Add a single layer of prosciutto.
7. Add the fresh burrata.
8. Drizzle with honey.
9. Season with fresh herbs, salt and black pepper. Enjoy!

Now, it’s time to grab our aprons and enjoy the seasonal delights of winter!