Simple Garlic Bread

This is such a simple recipe, but I am still marking it down because, as I've said before, I'm making sure I've got down some family favorite recipes for my children to have. And, this, as simple as it is, is definitely one of them. The main thing I remember about garlic bread in our home when I was growing up, is it was a necessity every time we had spaghetti for dinner. Now, my mom didn't make spaghetti all the time. She made it a few times a year, and when she did, it was a huge production: the homemade sauce bubbling on the stove for hours, me picking all of the mushrooms out and eating them to the point that she learned to add way more than needed, ah, the memories. Well, if my grandma was involved, and there was a huge family dinner with all the relatives, she did the garlic bread. Both she and my mom had the same recipe. And, when she cut the bread, and if I was near her (and I made sure I was), she always seemed to cut a couple of pieces that were just too thin for the table. And, then she would hand me one and take the other, shrug her shoulders, and explain that we had to eat them, they were just too thin. So, more than a recipe, which is delicious by the way, this garlic bread represents tradition for me, in more ways than one.

Simple Garlic Bread in the bowl, free from "too thin" ones.

Out of the oven, resting before being sliced

Simple Garlic Bread

Ingredients:

1/2 cup vegan margarine
6 - 8 garlic cloves, minced
1 loaf of extra sour French bread (I use Colombo)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Cut the loaf in half width-wise, then each half length-wise. The easiest way I do this is to stand each cut half on end on the cutting board and slice from the end down. Lay the four pieces on a cookie sheet, cut side up. Melt margarine in a small pot over medium heat. When melted, add the minced garlic, and cook for about one minute, until the garlic releases its fragrance. Take a basting brush and paint the margarine and garlic on the bread. If there is any garlic left in the pot, be sure to get those too! Bake for eight to ten minutes, until the edges of the bread begin to brown. Remove from oven and let cool for about five minutes before cutting into individual slices. If you cut the bread too soon, it will tear jaggedly. Share a too-thin piece with someone you love. Feeds five hungry vegans. Double or triple if the gathering is large.