Imagine my surprise when I looked at the Herbes de Provence that I had purchased at a market in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence only to find that there was no lavender. I did a bit of research and learned that Jean-Baptiste Reboul was the first to document recipes from Provence in a cookbook. The last edition he wrote in 1910 makes no mention of using lavender in Provençal cooking. Beginning in the 1970s the term ‘Herbes de Provence’ was used to market a mixture of herbs grown in this region. There’s no official body that governs the ingredients in Herbes de Provence but it typically includes rosemary, thyme, oregano, savory and marjoram. Apparently lavender is added for the North American market.
Another popular food in the outdoor markets was garlic – piles and piles of fresh garlic. I loved the color – white with a tinge of purple (dare I say lavender). I bought a head of garlic at the large Sunday market in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue knowing that I’d do something with it and decided to roast it. Roasted garlic is completely different than raw garlic – it’s sweet, mild and soft. It’s so simple to prepare and makes for a great addition to an hors d’oeuvres tray.
There was a heat wave going on while we were in Provence and our house wasn’t air conditioned. The last thing I wanted to do was to heat up our oven to roast a head of garlic about the size of my fist. Next thought was to roast it on our gas grill but for the life of us, we couldn’t get the grill to light! That’s when I went online to see if you could ‘roast’ garlic in a microwave and it turns out that The Kitchn had a recipe to do so. While it wasn’t exactly like roasting it in the oven, it was pretty close and definitely an option if you find yourself without an oven (or toaster oven) or pressed for time. I topped the garlic with literal Herbes de Provence – rosemary, thyme and lavender (remember, I’m American) from the garden at our house – and really good local olive oil. Once it came out of the oven, I squeezed the head so that garlic oozed out into a small bowl. We served it along with local meats and cheeses and a perfect baguette.
Back at home I decided that I should make it the traditional way (in the oven) and share it with our friends, Genevieve and Eric S, who had been with us in France so they could compare the two. For this batch, I used the same herbs but this time from my garden (‘Herbes de Phoenixville’ just isn’t quite the same). Slow roasting in an oven is definitely the way to go (unless you have extenuating circumstances) and that is the recipe I’m sharing today.
People can’t seem to get enough of this garlic, so I’d recommend doubling or tripling the recipe. If there’s any leftover you can use it in salads, pastas or on bread.
| Provençal Herb Roasted Garlic | | Print |
- 1 head of garlic
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano and/or lavender)
- Heavy pinch of sea salt
- 2 to 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- Serve with baguette slices or crackers
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Tear off two sheets of the same sized aluminum foil – enough to double wrap the head of garlic.
- Using a sharp knife cut off the top one quarter inch of the head of garlic, exposing many of the cloves. Place head of garlic on top of aluminum foil.
- Sprinkle freshly chopped herbs and sea salt atop head of garlic. Drizzle generously with extra virgin olive oil.
- Wrap head of garlic tightly in aluminum foil and place in oven.
- Cook for 40 minutes and check to see if the clove in the center is tender. You should easily be able to pierce it with a knife. If not, continue cooking for 10 minute intervals until it’s very soft. It’s okay if you cook it a bit too long as it will just caramelize more. Timing will depend on the size of the head of garlic and how old it is.
- Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes to cool. Once cool enough to handle (I wear rubber gloves if it’s not cool enough), place head of garlic in your hand and squeeze the cloves into a small bowl. Smooth the mixture into the bowl with a spoon. It will look more like a spread than individual cloves.
- Serve warm or at room temperature spread on baguette slices or crackers. Roasted garlic keeps for two weeks refrigerated.
* Recipe can easily be doubled or tripled. I prefer to wrap each head of garlic individually. The roasted garlic can be used in salad dressings, pasta sauces, slathered on a slice of bread with butter, etc.
I still think leaving it in foil outside would have worked – slooow roast!😊
Genevieve – Ha! That was a tempting option since it was certainly hot enough. We were creative as there was no way we were turning on the big oven.