Cut off just the hard end of the garlic clove that makes contact with the ground, just a few mm thick. Lay the blade flat on remaining clove and give it a smack. This will release the clove from the skin. Rub on toast directly. If it’s split open a bit, rather than completely whole, it will release the essential (read in Jacques Pepin accent) oils more effectively as will rubbing the inside of the clove rather than the outside of the clove. Dubyakay’s description of the toast acting like a grater is perfect.
If you melt that garlic in the butter it will extract the flavor really well. Eating raw garlic directly can be a bit much. One cheat is to press like you say and add to the butter and just zap it in a microwave for 30 seconds or whatever works for the quantity you need. This makes a great dipping sauce which is also perfect with steamed crab. Another simple sauce for that is just wine, vinegar, and chopped shallots, onions, or the like. Fresh ground black pepper is great on either of those pairings.
Cut off just the hard end of the garlic clove that makes contact with the ground, just a few mm thick. Lay the blade flat on remaining clove and give it a smack. This will release the clove from the skin. Rub on toast directly. If it’s split open a bit, rather than completely whole, it will release the essential (read in Jacques Pepin accent) oils more effectively as will rubbing the inside of the clove rather than the outside of the clove. Dubyakay’s description of the toast acting like a grater is perfect.
If you melt that garlic in the butter it will extract the flavor really well. Eating raw garlic directly can be a bit much. One cheat is to press like you say and add to the butter and just zap it in a microwave for 30 seconds or whatever works for the quantity you need. This makes a great dipping sauce which is also perfect with steamed crab. Another simple sauce for that is just wine, vinegar, and chopped shallots, onions, or the like. Fresh ground black pepper is great on either of those pairings.
Got it. Thanks for the super detailed instructions! What type of bread do you use? I’ll have to try making this some time since I love garlic bread
Nice baguette with a good crust, don’t want it to crush while cutting. You can do this picnic style without even toasting really.