garlic knots

ever since my bout with a chest cold earlier this week i have been majorly craving garlic, and there’s a good reason why.

garlic is a natural antibiotic.  after a few days of having whatever bug i caught floating around in my system, my body told my brain that i needed something to kill it off.  i quickly responded by eating lots and lots of garlic, sometimes 2 or 3 heads a day.  i’m feeling much better, but i probably don’t smell too great.

garlic knots
1 c warm water
1/4 c sugar
1 1/2 tsp active yeast
3 tbsp chopped basil
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
2 c unbleached, unenriched flour
6 cloves minced garlic
4 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp earth balance

in a large bowl mix the warm water, sugar, active yeast and basil.  i find the yeast is most effective when kept in the refrigerator.  it stays alive much longer than when kept out.

after about 15 minutes the mixture will start to froth at the surface.

at this point add the oil and salt, slowly mix in the flour.  eventually the dough will start to form a ball, flour your hands and lift the dough out of the bowl onto a floured surface.  it should still be really soft but just dry enough not to stick to your hands.

gently knead for about 5 minutes

the final result should look something like this.

after kneading, oil your hands and a large bowl. lift up the ball of dough and pull the edges to one side and pinch them together.  the opposite side should be smooth and even.  lay the ball in the greased bowl with the smooth side up so it will rise evenly.

cover with plastic wrap or a large plate and let rise in a warm place for 45-60 minutes.  if you have a gas oven, put it in there while it’s off works because the pilot light keeps it warm.

the ball should double in size.  you know it’s ready when you can stick 2 fingers in and they come out clean, leaving an indentation.

take the dough out with greased hands and lay it on a cutting board.  punch it down to get some of the air out of it.  cut into evenly sized pieces and roll them out with floured hands to long, stringy pieces (about 4 inches). tie them in a knot and put on a tray lined with parchment paper.

let rise a second time in a warm place for about 30 minutes.  they should get slightly bigger.

in a small bowl mix together the minced garlic, half of the olive oil and half of the earth balance.  brush or spoon the mixture over the knots of dough before putting them in the oven.

i also threw some cloves of garlic on the pan because it makes a warm and savory spread when they’ve cooked a while.

bake at 375F until the edges start to brown, about 15 minutes.  when they come out brush them with the rest of the olive oil and earth balance mixed together and add salt on top.

they are absolutely amazing tasting when they are fresh out of the oven.

yields 30 knots