Mom, why do the towels smell like garlic?

I suppose that the long answer to why our towels smell like garlic is that the apartment is small, and even if all of the windows were open, the cooking smells would be absorbed into the towels in the bathroom, which is really only about 15 feet from the kitchen, around the corner in the hall. Also, the ventilation hood for the stove top is set up in the microwave, which is installed just above the stove top, but if you are cooking on the front burner, the aromas don't reach the fan, just behind, and cooking steam goes straight up to the ceiling.

But the short answer is that I made a delicious soup that had a lot of garlic in it.
Here's the recipe ( from A King Arthur Flour recipe booklet):

Albondigas Soup

Meatballs:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1 large egg
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano

Soup:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups diced onions
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 cans (about 28 ounces) diced or crushed tomatoes with green chilis
(or 2 cans diced or crushed tomatoes and a separate can of green chilis)
1 8-ounce zucchini, diced
6 cups (48 ounces) chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sliced scallions (optional)
juice of 1 lime
cilantro sprigs for garnish

To make the meatballs:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In medium saute pan, heat the olive oil and add the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• In a mixing bowl combine the beef, pork, egg, cornmeal, cumin and oregano. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir in the 1/2 cup cooked onions.
• Mix well and form into 1-inch balls.
• Place the meatballs on a baking sheet and cook for 20-25 minutes. (Cooking the meatballs this way sets the proteins in the meat and will keep the soup from getting cloudy when it simmers.
• Remove the meatballs from the oven and set aside.

For the soup:

• In a 6-quart pan, heat the olive oil.
• Add the onions and cook, stirring iccasionally, until they become translucent and begin to pick up some color. Stir in the garlic and zucchini, and cook for 5 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, chicken broth, bay leaf and salt, and bring to a simmer.
• Carefully drop in teh meatballs.
• Reduce the soup to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
• Five minutes before serving, add the scallions and lime juice.
• Taste and adjust the seasoning as desired.
• Serve with fresh cilantro on top.
• Yield 12 cups, 8 12-ounce servings.

P.S. Several of my favorite shirts smelled like garlic and onions so now I have to wash them again. Next week I'm making beef stew. Does that mean I have to encase my clothes in plastic?