The beauty of garlic

This is not a good time for garlic, banished from our table because of the collateral consequences that deter conversation. However, there are some products that, by nature, are very delicate and fresh. For these, what comes later is never a problem, especially as, when eating it, it is sweet, fragrant and delicate. The Voghiera Garlic PDO offers a good example of this. Attention please: Voghiera, is spelled with an “i” and refers to the little hamlet in the province of Ferrara, and not to the almost-homonymous town near Pavia (Voghera). We’re on the right side of the ancient main branch of the Po-Eridano. The village is scattered with noble buildings, re-launched by the Estensi family in the 15th century.

After the Estensi’s domination, at the end of the 16th century, some enlightened land owners in the area, having noticed the potential and the fertility of this territory, began to cultivate garlic, a cultivation which has been almost unchanged to our days. The characteristics of the soil in which the garlic grows anticipate a lot of the value of the bulb: the soil is light, rich in fluvial sands, clay and silt; it is the precursor to the balanced aromas and the flavour that make this garlic stand out from other species in the same family.

The Voghiera Garlic is sweet, fragrant, delicate and fresh. Its aroma depicts a very versatile product with a decisive yet non-intrusive nose. It is white, with rare pink stripes, and a large, very round shape. The bulbilli – the cloves – are few and large, very tight and wrapped in thin white skin. It has a gentle, slight and pleasantly pungent taste, and a characteristic aroma, marked by the presence of allicin, a germicide which gushes out after crushing the cloves.

In order to start to understand its potential, try to prepare the following recipe. This is a simple and quick preparation (it takes around 20 minutes) that allows you to obtain a product that can be used as a spread, or with meat and fish.

Voghiera Garlic PDO cream

Ingredients
10 cloves of Voghiera Garlic
15 –18 ml of extra virgin olive oil
1 15 cl jar
a pinch of salt

Method

Peel the garlic cloves, carefully removing all the skins. Put the garlic in a pot filled with cold water and cover it with its lid. Bring the water to the boil and wait for a minute. Drain and repeat this procedure with cold water. Drain again and put the cloves into a pan with the oil. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often. After this, finely blend the mixture. Add the salt, stir and leave to cool. Once the cream is cold, pour it in some sterilised glass jars and close them.