Due to curcumstances beyond my control, I'm currently in possesion of 14lbs of fresh garlic bulbs.

[Richard Steele]

Beyond my control? beyond my UNDERSTANDING is more like it.
I really have -no- explanation for how this happened,
so please don't ask.

It's "Ten Peaks" brand garlic, packed in 2-pound bags,
and I've got SEVEN of them.
I had 20, but managed to foist 13 off upon various co-workers.

So, what would YOU do if you had this much garlic?
I know what I'd do, and I'm doing it already...
but once I've done that, I'm still gonna have
about 5 pounds of garlic left over...

So I'm looking for ideas here...
Not ORDINARY ideas: big crazy ideas.

Ideas so big and crazy that they would involve 5 pounds of fresh garlic.

Edditted fer spellin: I always put the double "s" in "posession"
in the wrong place these days.

[Warpy]

1. This will take care of 3 heads or so

http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/jbh/chick_40_cloves.html

The rest can be pureed in a handy chopper, some frozen and some kept in a small jar under a layer of olive oil in the fridge for putting into everything you eat for the next 6 months.

You can also freeze the pesto you make with some of it.

[Richard Steele]

3. 3 heads or so? What part of "14 POUNDS" did you not understand?

Seriosly, I am WAAAAY beyond dealing with 3 heads or so.

I'm looking for ideas that will help me fill quart-sized canning jars.

[Warpy]

10. My own plan would be to shove it underground

for harvest in late fall, followed by a call to the local health food stores and better restaurants to sell whatever I get out of it. The only other thing to do would be to sell or give away about 12 pounds of it.

I know of nothing else that will get rid of 14 pounds of garlic besides the trash can.

My sarcastic suggestion was for the resonable amount you'd have left after you'd given or sold the surplus.

[Richard Steele]

18. There AREN'T any "better restaurants" around here. There ain't no "better" anything around here.

I don't know if I've mentioned my recent "reversal of fortune"
to you, but I'm not living in Durham NC anymore.

I'm currently deep in the woods, hiding out from the CULT
that ate my ex-Sweetie, and it's a 40-minute drive from here
to a fucking WalMart with a McDonalds in the lobby. :(

[Warpy]

21. There's always Ebay

[Tangerine LaBamba]

2. You are SO lucky!

I'm make a Spanish bread soup that calls for a garlic broth. This is a pretty close version of the one I make, but I use a whole head of garlic, or two, if I have enough on hand:

http://www.theheartofnewengland.com/food-GarlicSoup.html

I trust you're pickling a lot of them. Oh, yummy! I'm jealous, I really am.

A few heads peeled and chunked, sauteed in lots of olive oil with some salt and a bit of red pepper flakes, makes a terrific Pasta con Aglio e Olio, a late-night favorite around here. Grated cheese on top is optional - I skip it.

Whatever you decide to do, just keep in mind that you're a very, very fortunate man, and I wish you lived next door to me....................

[Richard Steele]

4. It's not luck....

And it's not a fun happy thing.

[Duer 157099]

5. Pickling them! Great idea!

I remember some olives stuffed with garlic that I used to get at Trader Joes! Yum.

Yep, that's a great idea, pickle 'em!

[Tesha]

6. wow... POUNDS of garlic...

I cannot imagine... when I make a stew, I throw in a couple of heads whole - they become the appetizer squeezed out on fresh bread

http://www.thegarlicfarm.co.uk/

http://gilroygarlicfestival.com/

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/554880


Garlic soup, garlic ice cream, pickle it, dry it, try this...

We have had it at a restaurant in Mexico where they mince it, fry it in oil until brown, then store it in more oil. They serve it on top of fish but we always ask for it just as a condiment on the side. It becomes kind of candied when stored in the oil. I haven't tried it at home yet but it is really good down there!

[hippywife]

7. Recipes from the Gilroy Garlic Festival

I haven't searched through it but there might be some ideas here.

http://www.garlicfestival.com/

While I can't myself envision 14 lbs. of garlic, truthfully I would follow some of the pickling and pureeing ideas for some of it and then keep the rest in a cool, dry, dark place where it will keep for use as fresh. Friends of ours plant some 500 garlic bulbs every year, and while they do give some away to friends, they still end up with plenty and never seem to have a problem with it as long as it is stored properly.

This is also a good resource for preserving foods of all kinds in all manner:

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/

[ginnyinWI]

8. take one two-pound bag of them,

Cut off the tops and put heads on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and bake until done. Sqeeze them all out of their wrappers, mash and freeze in small amounts. Use as needed on and in recipes.

[kestrel91316]

9. Find all the different pickled garlic recipes you can, pickle a bunch

and put them up in pint jars and give them away as gifts. For the next three years.

[The empressof all]

11. Take it to the food bank

I would braid some if they still have the tops and store in a cool dry place. You can also do everything everyone else mentioned above.

For a non food application...

Get a can of polyurethane and dip the most perfect heads. Let dry and adhere then to a straw wreath with a hot glue gun to keep the vampires and friends bearing more garlic away :shrug:

[pleah]

12. Send it all to me!

:evilgrin: Well, you did say "big crazy ideas".:hi:

[cbayer]

13. There is a restaurant in New Orleans, Upperline, that has a garlic week every year.

They use garlic from start to finish, including ice cream for dessert.

Why not make a garlic feast for your closest friends, highlighting garlic every step of the way!

:hi:

[eleny]

14. Do you have a dehydrator?

Here's one woman's recipe for making garlic powder. http://www.choosingvoluntarysimplicity.com/how-i-make-garlic-powder/

[Tangerine LaBamba]

15. Funny .........

we just returned from Penzey's, where I copped, among other goodies, a one-pound bag of granulated garlic. Now I'm wondering how many pounds of garlic went into making this little prize...................................

On edit: I called Penzey's and asked them if they knew how many pounds of garlic went into making one pound of granulated garlic.

Nine pounds, I was told.

I love those people ......................................

[The empressof all]

16. Interesting site! Lots of stuff about Garlic Juice

I happen to have bought some garlic juice a few months back when my local store marked down their spices that weren't selling and getting old. It hadn't reached it's best used by date but I was less than impressed. Maybe it's one of those things you just need to make fresh. Alas, I no longer have a juicer and probably won't be buying another real soon....But the idea of fresh garlic juice continues to intrigue me. I don't know what I'd do with it that I couldn't do with crushed or finely minced garlic but there must be something!

On edit: The site didn't mention garlic juice but I followed a link about it:

http://www.garlicvalleyfarms.com/

Not only will it get rid of mosquitos and fire ants, it'll keep bad bugs off your tomatoes and cherries. It lowers your cholesterol and cures nightime leg cramps. Apparently it's also the secret to catching Bass. Perhaps we need to call Ron Popeil!

[eleny]

17. I guess it could freeze in a cube tray and keep in plastic bags

Liquid garlic - nectar of the gods.

[Richard Steele]

19. Holy crap! Yes I do! I really do!

I picked it up a few months ago, and then packed it away and
forgot all about it! It's a big one: it could handle 5 pounds of garlic
a day!

OMG, you're an ANGEL!:bounce:
Remind to give you a big wet one right on the cheek sometime! :hug:

[eleny]

20. What a great coincidence

Btw, the person writing at that web site mentioned that some of the commercial products have a soy binder. So your dried result will taste so much better.

I suppose it will lose potency over time. But maybe it won't if it's kept in the freezer.

Hugs back atcha and good luck! :hug: :hi:

[Richard Steele]

22. Just an update: I've had 5lbs of garlic in the dehydrator for 20 hours now....

Looks like it's drying nicely,
but it's gonna take WAAAY longer than a day
before it's hard enough to grind to powder form.

But once it's done, we're gonna have
the best garlic powder, and a year's supply of it!
We have a chest freezer and a vacuum sealer here,
so once I grind it, I can seal it into 2TBS vacuumed pouches
and freeze them.

Tomorrow is my day off, so that's the day I cook for the house...
the Entree for Thursday Supper is gonna be a 5-pound turkey breast
slow-roasted 5 hours inside a 2-inch layer of garlic bulbs.

I used 2lbs of my garlic making 3 dozen Pickled eggs
and a quart of "pickled garlic with coriander and fresh tomato".

After tomorow's turkey breast, I'll have less than 7 pounds to deal with.
I'm making progress. Life is good.

[REACTIVATED IN CT]

23. And i betcha there are no vampires within miles of your place.

Coincidence? I think not.

[pengillian101]

24. We have a chest freezer and a vacuum sealer

I'd just vacuum pack, seal and freeze the fresh garlic. But that's just me.

I vacuum and freeze everything fresh, as it works so great.