Confit fresh garlic on toast with chili-dressed cucumber, soft goats cheese and parsley 

By Matthew Parker @kioskenpaaodden

Ingredients for 2 people

  • 2 heads fresh garlic, trimmed of the root & green stem
  • 300g neutral oil (rapeseed or sunflower)
  • 2 thick slices of day old sourdough bread
  • 100g cucumber, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 1/2 red chili, finely chopped
  • Small handful of parsley leaves, picked off the stem
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1 tsp honey
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 50g soft goats cheese or feta
  • 50g greek yoghurt
  • Salt & black pepper

How to

  1. Peel a couple of layers from the fresh garlic heads to reveal the more tender parts
  2. Put the garlic heads in a small saucepan and then add enough oil to cover them fully
  3. Warm the oil until it’s around 80C and cover with a small baking paper cartouche to help keep them submerged
  4. Cook them at the same temperature for around 30-40 minutes until the garlic is slightly softened - once confit, take them out of the oil with some tongs and let them cool slightly
  5. In the meantime mix the chopped cucumber, finely chopped chili, a pinch of salt, extra virgin olive oil and honey in a small bowl and dress them a few times with a spoon
  6. Mix the yoghurt and the soft goats cheese and some freshly cracked black pepper in a small bowl to make a nice spreadable mass
  7. Take a griddle pan and heat it on the stove over a medium/high heat and then give the sourdough slices a bit of extra virgin olive oil and grill them until they are charred slightly
  8. Split the garlic heads lengthways and then add them to the griddle pan with the bread slices and then griddle until slightly charred
  9. Spread the cheese & yoghurt mixture on the toasted bread and then add the chili-dressed cucumbers and the garlic and then finish off with some flaked sea salt and freshly picked parsley