cook

Here’s a no-fuss recipe for roasted garlic butter

Slather on your toast for instant garlic bread or drizzle on anything for some indulgence

The scent of pearly garlic cloves turning toasty golden in butter. There are few things to beat that. If you’re a fan of roasted garlic, if you like a buttery treat, and if you love when garlic meets butter, then this is the perfect recipe for you to try at home.

All you need is a saucepan and three ingredients for this luscious treat. 

Ingredients

Garlic cloves (peeled) about 20-25

Olive oil

Unsalted butter 100g

Method

To roast/confit the garlic: 

• Use a saucepan or pan, add the garlic and the olive oil. The garlic cloves should be covered by oil
• Turn the heat to low and let the garlic cook and reach a simmer but don't let it boil
• Let the garlic slow cook until golden
• Take it off the heat and strain the oil 

For the butter:

• Let the butter come to room temperature and whip gently with a whisk or a spoon to get it creamy
• Mash the roasted garlic with a fork to get a mushy paste and add to the butter
• Whip it all together to get a creamy roasted-garlic butter

Tips

• If you like crunchy garlic bits in your butter, let the garlic cook until golden brown. This will give the cloves a slightly crispy layer, so you will have soft mushy bits and crunchy flakes when you mash the roasted garlic.
• Don’t throw away the oil! You can use the garlic-infused oil in pastas and salad dressings.
• It is advisable to use unsalted butter, however the recipe can also be made with regular salted butter as long as the saltiness works for your palate. 
• You can also add some dried herbs or chilli flakes along with the garlic.
• Microwave the roasted-garlic butter for 10 seconds to melt slightly, and you can drizzle this on bread, pasta, salad, and anything else you fancy. 

— Rumela Basu