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Goats' cheese on garlic toast

From Nigel Slater's Simple Suppers
Serves 2

2 heads garlic
olive oil, for drizzling
2-3 sprigs fresh thyme
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 goats' cheese round
1 ciabatta or baguette
lettuce leaves, to serve
prosciutto, to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 120C/250F/Gas 4.

Arrange the whole heads of garlic snugly in an oven dish. Drizzle with olive oil and season with thyme, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast in the oven for about an hour, or until the garlic is softened.

Squeeze the soft garlic out of its skins into a small dish or bowl. Add enough olive oil to make a thick paste and season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Slice some goats' cheese thinly. Cut the ciabatta in half and place under the grill to toast then spread the slices with the garlic paste. Place the goats' cheese on top and pop under the grill again until the cheese has melted.

Serve with on a bed of fresh, crisp lettuce leaves. I often add a couple of slices of prosciutto, too.

Roasted Garlic Soup

Garlic is a surprisingly good source of vitamin C & thought to boost the immune system & promote healthy blood flow. Roast garlic gives it a sweet rich flavour. The more garlic you you use, the better this tastes - but eat too much and you'll smell the garlic coming out of your pores a week later! Makes about 4 servings:

8 heads of garlic
6 cups of vegetable or chicken broth (to taste)
Baguette (enough to transform into about 8 slices)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius).

2. Cut top third of garlic heads off so that you can properly carry out step three.

3. Arrange garlic heads in a baking dish, cut side up, and drizzle with olive oil so that each garlic head gets exposed to just a touch of olive oil.

4. Loosely cover the baking dish with a sheet of aluminum foil, and roast for 1 to 1.5 hours, or until cloves are super tender, almost like soft butter.

5. Give the roasted heads several minutes to cool down, then squeeze roasted garlic flesh into a bowl.

6. Slice baguette into 1/4 or 1/2 inch slices, then toast in a light coat of olive oil over medium heat in a large pan - toast both sides until baguette slices are light golden brown and crispy. Set toasted baguette slices to the side.

7. Combine roasted garlic flesh and 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth in a pot and warm over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, stirring often. Use a hand-held blender or a food processor to bring the broth and garlic together into a substantive soup. Season with sea salt and pepper, to taste.

To serve, place one or two toasted baguette slices in each bowl and ladle garlic soup over them.