GARLIC

Be more inventive with this kitchen staple using recipes from Melissa Thompson – there’s orzo with a punchy sauce, tear ‘n’ share bread, and rice-based stuffing for roast chicken

- MELISSA THOMPSON

Imagine a world without garlic. In fact, don’t – it’s too bleak. Garlic is part of the allium family, which includes onions and leeks, and it’s a versatile ingredient that helps build a number of different meals. It can add nuance, or it can pack a punch. The black olive & garlic sharing bread hails from a waitressing job I had in my teens. I got sacked after two days, but the memory of the restaurant’s garlic bread with black olives made it worth it. The recipe for squash & beetroot with orzo & roasted garlic feta sauce (overleaf) came about by accident when some whipped feta became too loose, but still tasted delicious. The garlic & nduja rice-stuffed chicken is a dish of pure comfort and spice, that’s so delicious it’s hard to stop eating it.

Garlic & black olive sharing bread

SERVES 4-6 PREP 15 mins plus 1 hr 30 mins proving COOK 50 mins MORE EFFORT V

300ml whole milk

140g unsalted butter, cut into cubes

2 tsp caster sugar

4 garlic cloves, crushed

500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting

7g fast-action dried yeast

1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

140g black olives, pitted and finely chopped (Kalamata work well) vegetable oil, for proving

1 Warm 80ml of the milk in a small pan over a low heat or in the microwave and add 1 tbsp sea salt. Stir to dissolve and set aside to cool.

2 Meanwhile, melt half the butter in 200ml of the milk in a saucepan set over a medium heat, along with the sugar and half the garlic. Leave to cool until lukewarm.