Being healthy means taking responsibility for your choices about nutrition.  A positive change to high nutrient foods that truly feed the body can be an exciting challenge.  As taste buds adapt, so the body cleanses itself and greater energy and well-being are experienced.

People either love garlic or they hate it.  Most people love it - and everyone feels strongly about it.

Garlic is one food that like onions and ginger stimulates the body's antioxidant mechanisms.  As with different foods garlic helps to boost the immune system.
Garlic is good for the heart and circulation, as it helps to lower blood pressure and cholesterol, to dilate blood vessels and to thin the blood.  It also has an anti-viral action that can keep colds at bay.  .

When cooking with garlic, beware that it does not burn:  it singes far more quickly than onions.  Once it burns it smells terrible and cannot be eaten.  It is best to add garlic towards the end of the cooking, particularly when frying, for this reason.  You can transform garlic by boiling it as it loses its sting and becomes a gentle and delicately aromatic vegetable. 

Buy heads of garlic that are plump and un-bruised, not soft or soggy, and always check that they have not started to dry out.  Make sure too, that they show no signs of mould or external sprouting.  Choose heads with regular and reasonable sized cloves.   

Keep garlic in a dry place where it is not touching other vegetables otherwise it will turn bad.  The cloves will sprout if they are stored in high temperatures over 70 degrees F and 20 degrees C.  Ideally, try and hang the bulbs in wire baskets so the air can circulate around them.   

One herb and one spice in particular have special affinities with garlic:  parsley is the herb and salt the spice.  Both bring out the best in garlic.  Parsley is a valuable herb for garlic lovers:  chew a sprig of parsley and your breath will no longer reek of garlic.  Also, if you swallow a glove of garlic whole, before a garlic flavoured meal your breath will be as sweet smelling as those who do not eat the meal.  Failing this, if you are still keen to avoid garlic breath, pick up some garlic tablets from a chemist or supermarket.  What a pity that those of us who love garlic in our food have to worry about our breath - after all, if everyone ate garlic nobody would find it objectionable!

Try choosing Organic Garlic wherever possible.  The arguments for choosing to eat organic products are powerful.

What is Green Garlic?

Green Garlic is identified by its tender green stalks.  It has a flesh mild taste which can be eaten raw.  It is ideal in salads and can be used in dressings.  When cooked green garlic makes a subtle addition to stir-fries, lasagne, soup or omelettes and provides a delicious flavour.  It is more perishable than dried garlic but can last in the fridge for a week.  To prepare clean the stalks and remove the outer layers, then crush or chop as usual.