Instructions: Prepare the garlic head for roasting by cutting it in half horizontally

(through the plumpest portion of the cloves), keeping each half intact. Place the halves, cut side down, in a baking dish coated with 1/4 cup of the olive oil. Roast in a 400-degree oven until tender and golden, about 30 minutes.

Remove dish from oven and let garlic cool.

To make the sauce: Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the skins and place them back in the baking dish. Smash the cloves into small bits (leaving some in chunks is perfectly OK). Scrape the mixture into a bowl and stir in the vinegar, tamari, ginger and sesame oil. Add the remaining 2 1/4 cups olive oil. May be prepared several days or weeks ahead and refrigerated.

Bring the sauce to room temperature before serving. Ladle into shallow platters and surround with chunks or slices of good quality, crusty bread. We served it with a Tyee 1999 Gewurztraminer, but any fine quality, well-balanced gewurztraminer would stand up to the sauce.

Blue cheese variation: Just before serving, gently heat the sauce in a skillet until warmed through. Pour the mixture into shallow plates and sprinkle with about 8 ounces of crumbled blue cheese (divided among the plates), and gently stir just until some of the cheese begins to melt slightly and merge with the sauce. Oregon pinot gris is a wonderful complement to the earthy flavors in the blue cheese.

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