Oh garlic. So divine, (or possibly satanic).
Here are some garlic myths (More here: http://www.americanfolklore.net/food/garlic-folklore.html). Just more reasons to love the greatest of all vegetables, enjoy.
According to Pliny, garlic and onions were invoked as deities by
the Egyptians at the taking of oaths. The inhabitants of Pelusium in
lower Egypt, who worshipped the onion, are said to have held both it
and garlic in aversion as food.
Egyptian slaves were given a daily ration of garlic, as it was
believed to ward off illness and to increase strength and endurance. As
indicated in ancient Egyptian records, the pyramid builders were given
beer, flatbread, raw garlic and onions as their meager food ration.
Upon threatening to abandon the pyramids leaving them unfinished, they
were given more garlic. It cost the Pharaoh today's equivalent of 2
million dollars to keep the Cheops pyramid builders supplied with
garlic.
During the reign of King Tut, fifteen pounds of garlic would buy a
healthy male slave. Indeed, when King Tut's tomb was excavated, there
were bulbs of garlic found scattered throughout the rooms.
In Mohammed's writings, he equates garlic with Satan when he
describes the feet of the Devil as he was cast out of the Garden of
Eden. Where his left foot touched the earth, garlic sprang up, while
onion emerged from the footprint of his right foot.
In Palestinian tradition, if the bridegroom wears a clove of garlic
in his buttonhole, he is assured a successful wedding night. Among
practitioners of Auryvedic medicine, garlic is held in high regard as
an aphrodisiac and for its ability to increase semen.
Garlic was placed by the ancient Greeks on the piles of stones at
cross-roads, as a supper for Hecate -- a goddess of the wilderness and
childbirth, or for protection from demons. The garlic was supposed to
the evil spirits and cause them to lose their way.
Greek athletes would take copious amounts of garlic before
competition, and Greek soldiers would consume garlic before going into
battle.
It became custom for Greek midwives to hang garlic cloves in
birthing rooms to keep the evil spirits away. As the centuries passed,
this ancient custom became commonplace in most European homes.
Roman soldiers ate garlic to inspire them and give them courage.
Because the Roman generals believed that garlic gave their armies
courage, they planted fields of garlic in the countries they conquered,
believing that courage was transferred to the battlefield.
Homer reported that Ulysses owed his escape from Circe to "yellow garlic".
European folklore gives garlic the ability to ward off the "evil
eye". Central European folk beliefs considered garlic a powerful ward
against devils, werewolves, and vampires. To ward off vampires, garlic
could be worn on one's person, hung in windows, or rubbed on chimneys
and keyholes. When diseases caused by mosquito bites were considered
"The touch of the vampire," garlic came in handy as a mosquito
repellent.
Dreaming that there is "garlic in the house" is supposedly lucky;
to dream about eating garlic means you will discover hidden secrets.
Fifteen pounds of garlic, she mused...
Yes, garlic is something more than food. For me it holds tradition, along with olive oil. That was all that was ever left in the salad bowl: sliced garlic, onions and oil&vinegar. And eventually that got eaten too, it was sacrilege to throw it out!
Portuguese meals were heavily weighted toward garlic and kale and cod and boiled potatoes. And red wine. Even the kids (me, at the time) loved it all and ate and drank it all.
My dad would buy dry, salt cod in slabs that looked like 2 by 8's. They were stacked against the wall at the farmer's market.
Recipe: Dry salt cod fillet, soaked in several changes of cold water times 2 days (Taste the water to check for saltiness--too salty will make you wish you were dead). Pat the fillets as dry as possible, rub with olive oil, salt and pepper to suit and grill over wood or charcoal. Sprinkle with roasted, slivered almonds and serve with the veg of your choice and a boiled potato.
And god bless us everyone!
