[1] and [2] A bulb of roasted garlic is a delicious accompaniment to grilled meats (photos © Sushi Roku Katana | West Hollywood.

Originating more than 6,000 years ago in central Asia, garlic took the culinary world by storm, spreading from culture to culture. It is used in cuisines on all the world’s continents and is one of America’s most popular herbs*.

A member of the onion genus, Allium (the Latin word for garlic), garlic’s cousins include chives, green onions/scallions, leeks, onions, and shallots. Its botanical family, Amaryllidaceae, comprises flowering plants, most grown from bulbs (including, not surprisingly, the amaryllis).

Garlic is not only a delicious flavor to many people; it is also one of the healthiest foods you can eat. It can lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, boost the immune system, and may even fight Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.

Here’s more on the health benefits of garlic.

The most common use of garlic involves crushing or mincing a few cloves and adding the raw garlic to a recipe. But you can cook entire bulbs or whole cloves of garlic as a side or a garnish to please your favorite garlic lovers.

There are two principal ways to do this, each delivering different flavors and textures. Roasting an entire head of garlic is the simpler of the methods.

Both produce a rich, sweet, mellow flavor that appeals even to people who don’t like the flavor of garlic in recipes.
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*An herb is a plant that is used to flavor or scent other foods.

A head of roasted garlic is served as a hearty side with roasted meats and poultry.

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F.

2. CREATE a “hinge” on the top of the garlic bulb/head by slicing horizontally into it. Stop before you cut completely through. Then close the hinge and wrap the entire head in aluminum foil.

3. PLACE the packet in the oven and bake for at least 45 minutes. It’s ready when you can squeeze the bottom of the bulb and the sweet, caramel-colored garlic oozes out the top.

Confit is a method of preservation whereby a food (usually meat, as in duck confit) is cooked slowly in fat. It is then submerged and stored in the fat, where it will last for months.

You can adapt the technique to garlic. Using peeled garlic cloves instead of the whole bulb, the confit method develops a flavor similar to roasting, but is more conducive to using as a garnish.

Use the garlic confit as a topping or side garnish for meat, poultry and grilled fish; with eggs; to top burgers and sandwiches; as part of a condiment tray with pickles; or any way that inspires you.

The garlic-flavored oil that remains in the dish after cooking is a quick flavor booster in almost any recipe that requires oil—including a vinaigrette for the meal’s salad course, or bread-dipping, or marinades. We like to use it in mashed potatoes and to cook eggs.

You can freeze or refrigerate the confit for future use, so don’t hesitate to make a large batch at once. Bring some to garlic-loving friends.
 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 225°F.

2. PEEL the garlic cloves: First soak the unpeeled cloves in cold water for five minutes to loosen the skin. Slice off the root and tip with a sharp paring knife, then use the tip to lift off the papery skin.

3. PLACE the peeled garlic cloves in an oven-safe dish with high sides, then cover completely with olive oil. You can also add aromatics to the oil—chives, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme—lemon zest, or chiles.

4. COVER and bake for at least an hour, or until the cloves become soft enough to squish between your fingers. Remove from the oven and drain the oil into an airtight jar or other container. Store in the fridge.

[1] Garlic confit, glistening cloves roasted in olive oil (photo © Apronclad.com

[2] Beautiful Russian Red garlic (photo © Chef Seamus Mullen | Facebook).

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Top: Crackers have pin holes so the air
escapes and they don’t rise. Photo courtesy
PantryPacker.com. Bottom: A checmical in
mint tricks the brain info feeling coolness.
Photo by Jeffrey Collingwood | SXC.

Why Chiles Taste Hot

The heat in chiles comes from a colorless, odorless chemical called capsaicin, which is found mostly in the seeds and ribs of the chiles.

Capsaicin binds with certain sensory neurons in the mouth to trick the body into thinking it is burning—although no physical burning takes place. Details.
 
Why Crackers Have Holes

The holes allow steam to escape during cooking, which keeps the crackers flat. Otherwise, they’d rise like a biscuit.

Adding holes is an art: If they are too close together, too much steam/moisture escapes and the crackers will be dry and hard. If the holes are too far apart, parts of the cracker will rise. Details.
 
Why Milk Is White

Milk is composed of 87% water and 13% solids—fat and proteins. The chief protein is casein, which comprises some 80% of the proteins in milk. The casein proteins and some of the fats deflect light, which results in milk being fairly opaque and appearing white to our eyes. Details.
 
Why Mint Tastes Cold

Menthol, a chemical in mint, binds with cold-sensitive receptors and tricks the brain into thinking that you are feeling a cold sensation. In fact, everything is the same temperature as it was pre-menthol. Details.

Why Onions Make Your Eyes Water

Onions absorb sulfur from the soil. When chopped, the cells are broken and release enzymes which react with the sulfur. When this substance comes in contact with the moisture in the eye, it triggers a burning sensation, which then engenders tears.

Sweet onions grow in low-sulphur soil, which is why they don’t emit fumes when cut. Details.
 
Why Popcorn Pops

Popcorn is the only variety of corn that will pop. When the kernels are heated up, the water inside begins to steam. Eventually, the pressure of the steam gets so great that the shell bursts. When some kernels remain unpopped, it is likely that they are low in moisture. Details.

 
Why Swiss Cheese Has Holes

Some of the microbes added to the milk in the cheese-making process produce significant amounts of lactic acid, which is consumed by other microbes. These microbes produce carbon dioxide as a byproduct, which creates bubbles within the cheese.

Rather than pressing them out, the cheese makers leave them as a distinctive feature of the cheese. Details.

Top: The sulphur in onions makes your eyes water. Photo courtesy Burpee. Bottom: Popcorn is the only corn kernel that pops. Photo courtesy Belle Chevre.

Top: tuna-collard wrap from Happy Bellies
with cooked spinach, grated carrots and
diced avocado. Center: hummus-collard wrap from The Pomelo Blog, with ham, tomato,
cucumber and sprouts. Bottom: For
portability or neater eating, tie a piece of
parchment or wax paper around the wrap.
Photo of Reuben collard wrap courtesy Spring
Vegan.

A few days ago, with the announcement of the new USDA Nutrition Guidelines, we mentioned collard wraps as a better-for-you sandwich option that fit right in.

HOW TO BUILD A COLLARD WRAP

There are two basic ways to make a collard wrap:

 
Like any wrap or other sandwich, the creativity is up to you. You can simply roll up egg or tuna salad in the collard, or use a variety of different ingredients for layered flavors and textures. You can also accent your wrap with a dipping sauce.

 
While they don’t get as much press as collard wraps, Swiss chard and Savoy cabbage make equally good wraps.

We adapted this wrap idea from Spring Vegan, which made it as a vegan wrap. We used actual corned beef and Swiss cheese, the fundamentals of a Reuben Sandwich.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. REMOVE the stems from the collards, blanch them, let them cool.

2. ADD the ingredients to the collard leaf and roll up as you would would a burrito.

This recipe, for a classic raw vegetable wrap, is from Urban Remedy. However, we do prefer our sesame seeds toasted (how to toast seeds).

Ingredients Per Sandwich

 
Preparation

1. PLACE the nori sheet on a dry cutting board. Pat the collard leaf as dry as possible, and lay it atop the nori.

2. PLACE the carrots, cucumber, avocado and sesame seeds on one end of the collard leaf. If using hummus, spread it on the leaf before adding the vegetables. Sprinkle the vegetables with salt.

3. ROLL the leaf tightly, starting at the end with the vegetables. Eat it like a Japanese hand roll. If you haven’t used hummus, you can dip the roll in chili sauce, peanut sauce or soy sauce for moisture and flavor.

Top: Make an egg wrap with fried, hard-boiled or scrambled eggs. Photo courtesy Pancake Warriors. Bottom: purple collard greens (the stems are purplish) from Good Eggs.

Top: A chopped salad with spring peas. You
can substitute sugar snap peas, or any other
legume. Photo courtesy The Foster’s Market Cookbook. Bottom: This creative salad wraps
leafy greens in prosciutto, with a side of
cannellini beans in vinaigrette.

Nutritionist advise that we eat more legumes. But most people don’t know what a legume is, so here’s an overview:

WHAT ARE LEGUMES?

First, some food trivia: Peas are not green vegetables, but legumes, a botanical category that includes beans, peas and lentils.

They are ancient foods that have been eaten for more than 8,000 years. Man the hunter-gatherer began eating legumes as soon as he created vessels to cook them in.

Back then, in the Neolithic Era, agriculture and permanent settlements evolved as nomadic hunter-gatherers realized the benefits of stable communities. As they tilled the earth, legumes were among the first cultivated crops.*

Legumes used to be called “wonder foods,” now they’re “superfoods.” Versatile, they are used in soups, stews, salads, side dishes, dips/spreads and more (bean burgers and lentil cakes are yummy!).

They’re also a good source of protein and fiber, low on the glycemic index, and can be a fat- and cholesterol-free substitute for meat.

EATING MORE LEGUMES

Nutritionists recommend that we consume up to three cups of legumes a week. They are one of the healthiest foods you can eat, and are inexpensive, too.
 
Eliminating The Gas

Some people shy away from beans because they are gassy. But there’s a solution for that: Just soak the beans for several hours or overnight in cold water and change the water several times, including right before you cook them. This helps to rinse away the indigestible complex sugars that create intestinal gas.

Even with beans cooked elsewhere, or those from a can: The more often you eat beans, the more your system accommodates them without digestive incident. You can get there in just three weeks of eating beans. [Source]
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*The first cultivated crop is believed to be figs, followed by wheat and barley, grapes, olives, sugar, tea, rice and sesame.

There are more than 4,000 cultivars of beans in the U.S. (and many more worldwide). See our Bean Glossary to discover some of them.

Beyond supermarket beans, take a look at heirloom beans. These are varieties grown from old strains, and have more flavor, better texture and a beautiful appearance. Due to lower yield, more demanding growing requirements or other factors, these strains have been passed by by large-scale commercial growers.

Many heirloom varieties have been rescued from extinction by dedicated specialty growers. For a beautiful bean selection, check out:

RECIPE: LENTIL, OLIVE & ARUGULA SALAD

This is one of the many ways in which legumes can be combined with other ingredients for fresh, tasty results. This filling salad is both hearty and flavorful. The lentils give it a nice heartiness, and two different types of olives give it a briny punch.

If you don’t like olives, substitute something you do like: cherry tomatoes, pimento, sliced gherkins, whatever. Prep time is 10 minutes, total time is 30 minutes.

Ingredients For 2 Servings

 
Preparation

1. RINSE the lentils in a sieve, then add to a pot with 2 cups of water, a few pinches of salt and a bay leaf. Bring the lentils to a simmer over medium heat and cook until tender, about 25 minutes. If all of the water is absorbed before the lentils are fully cooked, add a bit more along the way. When the lentils are done, set them aside in a mixing bowl. While the lentils cook…

2. HEAT a few tablespoons of olive oil in a pan until hot; then and add the red onions. Cook the onions for 5-7 minutes, until they’re translucent and starting to brown. At this point, add the carrots and turn the heat down to medium.

3. COOL the carrots and the onions together for 5 minutes, until they’re tender but still a bit crunchy in the center (overcooking is worse than undercooking, so take them off the heat sooner rather than later). When the carrots and onions are done, add them to the bowl with the lentils. Add the olives, squeeze in the juice of half a lemon, add a few pinches of salt and stir gently.

4. COOL the lentil mixture. When it has cooled completely, gently combine with the arugula. Add more lemon if you like, plus salt and pepper to taste.

Top: Lentil and arugula salad from Good Eggs | San Francisco. Center: Salmon with beluga lentils from Gourmet Attitude. Bottom: Grilled calamari atop heirloom beans and avocado cream (think puréed guacamole lightened with cream or yogurt), with dressed vegetables, from Bestia | LA.

Diet baked apples: Make them in the oven or
microwave, eat them warm or chilled. Photo
© J. Volodina | IST.

Personally, we avoid all “reduced calorie” versions of fattening desserts. It’s better to have a small piece of the good stuff less often, then it is to have “light” versions of brownies,, cheesecake, etc.

One of our go-to healthy desserts is a baked apple, made with non-caloric sweetener or low-glycemic agave syrup.

It couldn’t be easier. Use the apples you prefer for apple pie—varieties that hold their shape when cooked. Some examples include the Baldwin, Crispin/Mutsu, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp and Pink Lady.

You can bake them or microwave them. Microwaving is faster, and is the ideal way to cook a single serving. But if you become a fan of these baked apples, try baking them to see if you prefer the consistency.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. CORE the apples and place them in a microwave-safe dish in a half inch of water.

2. SPRINKLE the cored inside liberally with Splenda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Be sure the apple skin and the water are also sprinkled. The water will turn into a sort of syrup.

3. MICROWAVE for 3-1/2 to 4 minutes or until tender. Microwave ovens vary, so test until you find the right texture. Sometimes we want an al dente baked apple; other times we cook it longer to achieve the consistency of hot applesauce.

4. OPTIONAL: Reduce the cooking water to be more syrup-like. If you’re using agave, you can flavor the syrup with cinnamon and other spices. When ready to eat…

5. GARNISH as desired and serve.
 
Oven Baking Variation

PREHEAT the oven to 375°F. Bake the apples, basting with the pan liquid every 5 to 7 minutes, until tender (45 minutes to an hour).
 

Apples seem like the quintessential European fruit. But they first grew wild in the Tien Shan mountains of Kazakhstan, in Central Asia, millions of years ago.

Those early apples were likely smaller and more sour than modern apples—more like crabapples.

By about 6500 B.C.E., travelers were carrying cultivated apple seeds west, to West Asia, and east to China. Charred remains of apples have been found at a Stone Age village in Switzerland. (The Stone Aged spanned 6000 B.C.E to 2000 B.C.E.) [Source]

By the third century B.C.E., the Greeks were growing several varieties of apples; the ancient Romans also grew and loved the fruit.

Around 100 C.E., the Roman Legions brought apples along as they advanced north through Europe. Gaul (ancient France) became a fertile region for apple cultivation. The Romans also planted apples in Brittania (England). Centuries later, following the Norman conquest in 1066, new varieties of apple from France were introduced to England.

Garnish your apple with low-caloric toppings, like pomegranate arils. Photo © C. Letty | IST.

Apples were a boon to Europeans. They ripened just as it was getting cold and they could keep all winter, a valuable food source when nothing else was growing. Apples were also sliced, dried and stored. And bitter varieties were pressed to make cider.

The word “apple” comes from the Old English word, “aeppel.” Cognates appear in Dutch, Old Frisian, Old High German and Old Saxon. According to What’s Cooking America, there are approximately 10,000 different kinds of varieties of apples grown around the world with more than 7,000 of these varieties grown in the U.S. (only a fraction are grown commercially).

Apples arrived in the New World in 1607, with the Jamestown settlers. The seeds and cuttings they brought from Europe were not all suited for cultivation in Virginia, but they began to mutate to new varieties of American apples.

Many of these apples were fairly bitter—not hand fruit, but important for making cider, which was more valuable than hand fruit or cooking fruit.

Most early colonists grew their own apples. Due to unhealthy water sources, most people, including children, drank beer or hard cider instead of water (the same was true in Europe).

Apples were being grown in Massachusetts as early as 1630. Mutation was continually creating new breeds. The McIntosh mutation was discovered in 1796, by a farmer named John McIntosh.

Sweet apples for eating were grown as well, and today they’re grown in every state. Thomas Jefferson had a part in the development of the Fuji apple.

As the story goes, the French minister to the United States gave Jefferson a gift of apple cuttings; Jefferson donated them to a Virginia nursery which cultivated them as the “Ralls Genet.” In 1939, Japanese apple breeders crossed the genes from the Red Delicious apple with the Ralls Genet, resulting in the now-ubiquitous Fuji apple. [Source]