White Bean Dip with Roasted Garlic

95 cloves of garlic in the ground: an investment in the future.  This sign of fall comes amid our “peak foliage weekend” here in midcoast Maine, a fitting Sunday afternoon activity.  I pulled out the last odds and ends from the bed, added a layer of compost, worked it into the ground, raked it smooth and poked holes with my rake handle.   “Does garlic grow over the winter?” asks K.  Good question, I think.  Why do I always plant the garlic around Columbus Day?  (Because that’s when my garlic guru friend tells me to!)  But K. got me thinking, and I consulted Growing Great Garlic, by Ron L. Engeland, my second favorite garlic resource.  

    Engeland set me straight.  Turns out the goal is to plant early enough to establish good root growth, but late enough to avoid top growth.  Engeland gets into details such as bulb storage temperature and discusses the result in the bulb make up depending on month of planting.  If you want to learn more information, I recommend Growing Great Garlic.  Details aside, Ron says October is the recommended month for Northern growers.  

    After planting the cloves I covered the holes with soil, then covered the bed with a thick blanket of straw.  According to Engeland, mulch moderates the soil temperatures and protects the garlic from frost heaves in the winter.  Mulch also keeps moisture levels more constant, prevents weeds and erosion from heavy rains.  

    For now I am heading back to the kitchen, to make my new favorite spread, a white bean dip with roasted garlic.  This isn’t much of a recipe, but a list of ingredients:

White Bean Dip with Roasted Garlic

-cooked white beans, some cooking liquid reserved (I used a 15 oz can, drained)

-roasted garlic (I used 2 large cloves)

-scallions (1 large)

-salt/pepper

-olive oil (a good douse, maybe 3 tablespoons?)

-a bit of water or reserved cooking liquid to thin to preferred consistency, or lemon juice if you prefer

Blend in a blender or food processor.  Enjoy!