Citizens, this weekend is your beloved Leader’s favorite food event of the year – the mighty Gilroy Garlic Festival, held in the world capital of garlic, Gilroy California!
The Gilroy Garlic Festival is “Summer’s Ultimate Food Fair” — three full days of incredible food, beverages, arts & crafts, live entertainment, and cooking competitions. Founded in 1979, this event is hosted by thousands of community volunteers who have raised millions of dollars for local schools, charities, and non-profit organizations.
The festival was founded in 1979 by Dr. Rudy Melone, Don Christopher, and Val Filice, and has been a fundraiser for local charities, raising a total of about nine million dollars for assorted causes. Individual groups and charities also run booths at the festival, raising additional funds for their causes. The Gilroy Garlic Festival Association is a non-profit organization that is intended to support non-profit groups and projects in Gilroy.
It is the largest food festival in the United States, with hundreds of thousands of allium-hungry pilgrims making the trek to the holy of holies – Gourmet Alley, where the best food is to be found!
I’ve posted my favorite recipes from Gourmet Alley in the past, here and here. This recipe from Rebecka Evans however was a one-off from the 2016 cooking challenge, and it makes for a deliciously garlic-laden dish to try for yourselves! With 35 cloves of garlic (!) in the dish, if this doesn’t put you in a Gilroy frame of mind, I honestly don’t know what will, !
Battle on – The Generalissimo
Gilroy Garlic Festival Garlic Goat Cheese Bacon Soufflé with Creamy Garlic Mustard Sauce
- Total Time: 0 hours
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided, plus more for buttering ramekins
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cups whole milk
- 3 ounces mild fresh goat cheese
- 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 tablespoon thyme, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chives, snipped
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper
- 1/4 cup bread crumbs (for dusting ramekins)
- 4 large eggs, separated
- Boiling water
- 4 heads garlic (about 35 cloves), peeled and separated
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 pound bacon, drippings reserved
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
- 2 tablespoons Bourbon (optional)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 8–ounce package red and yellow grape tomatoes
- Salt and white pepper to taste
- 1 bunch Mache or baby greens
- ***
- 6 1/2–cup ramekins and large shallow roasting pan
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter six ½-cup ramekins, dust buttered ramekins with bread crumbs, removing any excess by gently tipping upside down, and set them in a large roasting pan.
- Make garlic paste: To a small sauce pan, add about 30 cloves garlic and about 1 tablespoon water. Cook over medium high heat until all water is absorbed, stirring occasionally. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and continue to cook until garlic is caramelized/roasted. Transfer garlic to a food processor. Add ½ tablespoon chopped thyme and a pinch of salt. Process until very smooth. Makes about 4 tablespoons of paste. Set aside until ready to use.
- Chop bacon and fry until crisp. Remove bacon from grease and set aside. Turn off the heat and keep pan with reserved bacon grease. Cool bacon slightly and chop fine. Set aside until ready to use.
- Thinly slice 4 garlic cloves and set aside until ready to fry. Mince 2 remaining garlic cloves. Set aside until ready to make blistered tomatoes.
- Soufflés: Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook over moderate heat until lightly golden, 1-2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the milk and simmer over low heat, whisking constantly, until the white sauce is thick and has lost its floury taste, about 4 minutes. Mixture will be thick and creamy.
- Stir in the goat cheese, Parmesan, chives, thyme, 2 tablespoons garlic paste and season generously with salt and pepper. Transfer the sauce to a large bowl and let cool slightly. Whisk in the egg yolks one at a time.
- In another bowl, beat the egg whites at medium speed until firm peaks form. Stir one-fourth of the egg whites into the white sauce to lighten it, then fold in the remaining whites until no streaks remain. Add about ½ teaspoon crumbled bacon to the bottom of each prepared ramekin. Pour the soufflé mixture into the ramekins, filling them almost to the top.
- Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until golden and firm. Remove the soufflés from the roasting pan using tongs.
- Prep Time: 0 hours
- Cook Time: 0 hours
Nutrition
- Calories: 874.17 kcal
- Sugar: 12.67 g
- Sodium: 1002.15 mg
- Fat: 68.74 g
- Saturated Fat: 33.28 g
- Trans Fat: 0.79 g
- Carbohydrates: 33.87 g
- Fiber: 2.64 g
- Protein: 27.94 g
- Cholesterol: 332.63 mg
Mmm sounds Great
Thank you!!!