The Benefits of Garlic

Give me some garlic and I'll give you some good cooking! I love Gaaaarlic! My grandfather who was an Italian chef used garlic so much that his kitchen always had a garlic aroma. So, who would have thought garlic could be used as aroma therapy for Italians. Well, at least for me it is. Garlic brings back my childhood memories.

Garlic has been around for thousands of years going back to ancient Egypt where large quantities of garlic were found around burial tombs. There have been many folklore tales about garlic keeping all sorts of evil spirits away. It is also known as an environmental friendly vampire bat repellant. However, in 1858, Louis Pasteur discovered its anti-bacterial killing capacity. As a matter of fact, in Russia, garlic was called the "Russian Penicillin". The secret compound found in garlic that created these health benefits is called allicin which has the anti-bacterial properties.

Here are some of the health benefits associated with garlic. However, I'm afraid you will have to experiment with the dosages to get the best cure:

Garlic is a natural aspirin.

Garlic can boost your energy level.

Garlic can prevent colds.

Garlic can be used to treat stomach aches.

Garlic can heal cuts and scratches.

Garlic can treat acne. However, I'm not sure if you could convince a teenager to put it on his or her face.

Studies have shown garlic helps blood clots.

Garlic has a primary effect on atherosclerosis by lowering your cholesterol.

There are primary but not completely conclusive studies that garlic could help certain cancers like colon or stomach.

Recent reports show that Garlic helps with weight control. Although there is no scientific proof, some claims show that garlic helps athlete feet, parasites, HIV, ear infections and the list just goes on.

Now, those are just some of the health benefits. When it comes to good cooking, you can see the benefits there when using garlic in many dishes from meats, poultry, to soups and vegetables. You can enhance the flavor of garlic when you roast it in the oven. It comes out actually a little sweeter. You could easily eat it like that on bread. All you do is preheat your oven to 350 degrees, take the garlic as a whole, and place the garlic in foil. Pour some olive oil and salt on it. Then roast it in the oven for about 15 minutes. The cloves will just pop out if you squeeze them. It's easy to add those cloves to any vegetable dish, too. Combining garlic, olive oil, and a squeeze of lemon accentuates any green beans or steamed broccoli; finishing off with some shavings of Reggiano Parmesean.

The best way I found to use garlic so that no one tastes the clove itself is by crushing it in a garlic press or using garlic juice that you can get from your grocery store. I only do this for those that get freaky about eating the pieces.

Garlic is even a good natural pesticide. If you see some green growth coming out of your garlic in the refrigerator, just take it and plant it. You will have a garlic plant. It will keep certain bugs from eating your plants.

Furthermore, I'm sure many of you are thinking, ok what about the breath factor. Well, chew some parsley and that will take care of that problem. Plus, parsley itself has its own health benefits so you get a double whammy. Or, have everyone in your family eating it and no one will know the difference. If you have to go out in public, just act like you smell it too and look at someone else.