Pureed White Beans With Roast Garlic and Olive Oil

• 1 whole head garlic
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound dried white beans, soaked overnight
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
• 2 sprigs of thyme to garnish

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cut off the top of the head of the garlic and pull away any loose papery skin.
3. Put the garlic on a piece of foil and sprinkle it with two tablespoons olive oil and wrap it up.
4. Bake it for one hour, or until the cloves are tender.
5. Meanwhile, simmer the beans in water to cover for about one hour, or until they are tender.
6. Halfway through cooking time, season them with salt and pepper.
7. Put the beans in a food processor.
8. Squeeze six cloves of garlic out of their skins and add them, along with the olive oil (reserve the rest of the garlic for using in salad dressings or on vegetables like baked tomatoes).
9. Process the beans until they are smooth, adding more oil if needed.
10. Correct seasoning and add more garlic if it seems needed.
11. Stir in the thyme leaves and serve in a bowl garnished with sprigs of thyme.

head garlic, extravirgin olive oil, white beans, salt, thyme, thyme

Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11184 (may not work)