Recipe of the Day .....

.
.
.
Roasted Broccoli with Almonds, Roasted Garlic and Mustard Vinaigrette (with commentary by me)




6   cups broccoli stems, florets, and leaves
2  garlic heads, tops trimmed off
2  teaspoons Dusseldorf or Dijon mustard
1  tablespoon whole grain mustard
1/2   cup peeled and blanched whole almonds (I just buy a bag of sliced almonds.)
2   tablespoons lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil


Heat the oven to 350˚F. Place the garlic into an ovenproof ramekin and drizzle the heads with olive oil. Season them with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cover them with foil and bake the garlic for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the garlic cool. ( Since I like to cook in a big pan I would just put a dab of olive oil in a pan and cook the peeled garlic cloves without a lid over low heat until they were done.)


Turn the oven to 425˚F. Place all the broccoli into a large mixing bowl. Drizzle it with olive oil and season it liberally with salt and pepper. Spread it out onto a sheet tray. (I would forget the oven and use the same pan - take out the garlic, put in the broccoli and cook just til its tender enough to eat.)


Bake the broccoli for 35 minutes then sprinkle the almonds across the top and cook until the broccoli is tender and the almonds are beginning to brown, about 12 more minutes.


Meanwhile, while the broccoli is roasting combine the mustards, lemon juice, and squeeze one of the roasted heads of garlic into the bowl making sure to get all the garlic "paste" you can from the garlic paper. Season the mix with a pinch of salt and some freshly ground pepper.


Take the other head of garlic and gently peel the paper from the cloves trying to leave the cloves whole. Set the cloves aside.


Using a whisk, combine the ingredients then drizzle in 4 to 6 tablespoons of olive oil, depending on how tart you like your dressings. (I use a fork and the pan cooked garlic that was already peeled.)


Once the garlic and almonds have finished roasting dump them into the bowl with the dressing, mix to combine the ingredients and serve garnished with more garlic cloves from the second head of garlic. (I would leave out the sliced almonds until the end then throw them in when tossing the mixture.)


.
..
.