If you think healthy eating condemns you to bland, flavorless foods, try roasted garlic.

Roasting a head of garlic not only is an almost effortless way to mellow its harsh bite, it's also a delicious way to create a lush, concentrated puree perfect for dressing up all manner of foods, from a simple slice of bread to poultry and salads.

The richly flavored pulp of roasted garlic cloves is smooth, fat-free and has a consistency similar to softened butter.

"For the diet-conscious, it is a godsend," says Barbara Kafka, author of the cookbook "Roasting: A Simple Art." "Its sticky texture and round feel in the mouth substitute divinely for fat and also helps ingredients and flavors bind together."

For instance, a salad dressing that has roasted garlic blended into it coats greens much the same way creamy, fattier dressings will. Kafka also suggests using roasted garlic to finish soups and sauces, or even spooned over baked potatoes instead of butter.

Roasting garlic is simple. Start with heads of garlic that have all the cloves intact and are tightly wrapped in the papery skin. Feel the weight of the head of garlic; the heavier the better, as this indicates an abundance of the flavor-packed essential oils.

To roast the garlic, remove as much of the papery outer layer as possible without separating the cloves. Next, slice about half an inch off the top of the head, exposing the tops of the individual cloves.

Place the garlic on a square of foil and sprinkle with a tablespoon of water. Loosely wrap the garlic in the foil, then pinch the edges together. Roast in a 400-degree oven for 45 minutes. Unwrap and let the garlic cool slightly before squeezing the now pulpy cloves from their casings.

Roasted garlic can be refrigerated, tightly wrapped, for four to five days. Here are some other ways to use roasted garlic.