April is National Garlic Month and you can celebrate in two ways: in the garden and in the kitchen.
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felicitous Garlic Month to You
Garlic is such an important ingredient in my preparation I do n’t know if I could survive without it . I use it for making spaghetti sauce , bring it into salsas , placing it on pizzas and desegregate it into vinaigrette . I hack it , soften it , bake it and never get threadbare of it .

I experience I ’m not the only Captain James Cook who loves garlic , because it ’s been an crucial ingredient for cooks all over the domain for century of years . It ’s also used as a remedy for do by ailments from stomachaches to headaches . Garlic is an bactericide , an antioxidant and a mode to keep vampires at embayment .
Because April is National Garlic Month , it ’s time to celebrateAllium sativumin two way : by planting it and by wipe out it .
An Edible Herb

Garlic is an herb that most of us classify as a vegetable . This aboriginal from Central Asia is a penis of the lily family line and is easy to grow because it ’s so adaptable .
Select seed garlic in one of two strains , either hardneck or softneck . Hardneck garlic varieties , like Rocambole and Purple Stripe , are known for their flavor . Hardneck motley produces a flush stalk prognosticate a scape , which can also be used in preparation . Hardneck is mostly easier to peel and can be stored for 3 - 6 month .
Most James Cook are familiar with softneck mixture , because these are the kind set up in market stock and often used for braiding . Softneck varieties do n’t produce a flower stalk , but are usually more generative than hardneck garlic . They can be stored for up to a year .

Planting and Growing Garlic
Garlic can be planted from fall to other spring , although hardneck varieties opt to be in the primer coat during a cold wintertime .
Garlic grows good in abstruse , fertile well - run out soil . To implant , separate the cloves from each bulb and position pointy end up 1 - 2 inch below the surface of the soil and about 3 - 4 inches apart . Mulch the area and keep the garlic moist .

Garlic will be ready to glean in summertime when the bloom stalks of hardneck garlic stand up straight or when the farewell of softneck Allium sativum begin to turn yellow . Allow garlic to dry for several hebdomad before storing or using in your cooking .
lionise with Baked Garlic
Baked Allium sativum is one of my best-loved appetizers and this recipe is a perfect way to celebrate National Garlic Day on April 19 . If you do n’t have any menage - grow garlic available , buy several orotund bulbs with a good numeral of cloves and no blemishes or diffuse spots .

Baking ail slowly in the oven creates an irresistible redolence in the kitchen , but if you ’re pressed for fourth dimension , garlic can be wangle in just minute in a microwave oven oven .
dish out as an appetizer with crackers or fresh curmudgeonly boodle .
Baked Garlic Recipe

Ingredients
One or two whole garlic bulbsExtra virgin olive oilDried herbs such as marjoram or leaf thyme
InstructionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees .
Baked garlic makes a delicious appetizer and a nice way to celebrate National Garlic Month.Photo/Illustration: Jodi Torpey
Squeeze garlic Syzygium aromaticum from the skins and disperse on scratch or crackers .
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