Have you ever been to those open olive bars (they have one at Fresh Market) and taken some of their roasted garlic home to enjoy? Well, there are many "how-to's" out there, the generally adopted one involves slicing the tops off the garlic head, slathering it in EVOO, and slow roasting it but in the end, you're stuck squeezing the cloves out of the head and, well, they often come out mushy and unappealing to look at.
Here's a hack (and the way it was done at the CIA- Culinary Institute of America- not the government spies lol)
Begin by using whole, peeled garlic. You can buy it already peeled and use it as long as it's not packed in oil, water or brine.
In a glass baking dish, place the peeled cloves and around 1/4-1 cup of EVOO, depending on how many cloves you have. The size of your baking dish will also go according to the amount of cloves. No, they do not have to be totally flat on the bottom. But you don't want them more than 2 layers deep.
You will need just enough to cover the cloves.
Place on the cover or tightly cover with foil and roast for 1 hour at 275 in your oven (longer or shorter depending on the darkness you desire).
Once done, allow to cool and scoop out the cloves, draining them as you go. You can store them in the fridge and take them out just before using them.
Don't toss the EVOO! You now have garlic-infused oil! Strain out any residue and add it to your regular container or make a special container for it.
I like my roasted garlic a little on the dark side and spread them on bread instead of using butter; I use them in dips; and even toss them whole into my Greek salad!
How about a little breakfast toast? Just smash some roasted garlic into freshly toasted bread and top it with a 6 minute egg. OH yum!