Baked Caramelized Onions

Two basis reasonable reasons I made oven baked caramelized onions. First, winter farm share has whittled down to just a hug basket of onions and greens (end of season) so I have a shit ton of onions. And second is I turned the heat off a few weeks ago but on these cool damp spring days, which I love, I get a little cold. I am not one to turn the heat back on, I just turn to the oven and bake stuff instead.

I was cold, have a basket of onions, and was hungry. So I caramelized onions. And I will probably do it again today because holy crap, I forgot how delicious these things are! I mean seriously, when was the last time you ate yourself some caramelized onions? They are like candy, but like a savory sweet candy that lights up your mouth hole and keeps you wanting to shovel more and more into your face. I made a skillet of 4 giant onions. I think I ate 3 of them (I gave the mr a scoop on his lentils for dinner, but then ate the rest). And I am not sorry about it.

So If you are hungry (but can wait for a little while), cold but don’t want to turn the heat back on, and/or have a shit ton of onions, well friend, this one is for you.

To the oven baked caramelized onions!

The stuff. Onions, vinegar, salt, water, pepper, and a little oil/

The hard part. Cut up onions pretty thinly. I used a mandolin but if you don’t have one, a knife will do. Just cut as evenly as you can.

Toss all the onions into a oven safe skillet, add in a pinch of salt, some vinegar an water and that is that. Pop into the oven and bake. It will take close to 2 hours so just even 1/2 hour or so give the onions a little stir.

And there you have them. A pile of the most delicious onion situation. Now how you eat them is up to you. I love them on just about anything but I also pretty much at all of these with a fork straight from the pan.

You do you.

-C

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Baked Caramelized Onions

• 4 large onions (any variety)

• 1/4 -`/2 cup wine or apple cider vinegar

• 1 cup water

• 1 teaspoon oil

• 1 hefty teaspoon salt

• pepper

Preheat oven to 350

Remove skins from onions and either with at knife or a mandolin, thinly slice all the onions evenly.

Grab a oven safe skillet or baking dish and light coat with the oil. Place all the onions into skillet.. Add in water and vinegar (use the greater amount for a little more tang) and sprinkle with about a teaspoon of salt.

Place skillet in oven and baked for 1 1/2- 2 hour, mixing every 1/2 hour until onions have reduced to about 1/4 of the volume and are golden brown and caramelized.

Remove form oven. Season with pepper to taste.

Eat anyway you want like on a salad, on a veggie burger, mixed into a lentil bowl or straight up just eat them with a fork.

Left overs (what left overs?) are good in fridge for about 4-5 days.

Millet with mushrooms, onions, Greens and a mustard vinaigrette

Salad season is here. Green salads, fruit salads, potato salads, and grain salads. All the salads and we are not mad about it.

This is a good grain salad using millet, which I am sightly surprised to hear that a lot of people have never had. Millet is kind of like quinoa, but not. I cooks fluffy and looks kind of the same, and is gluten free like quinoa. I think the biggest difference is that millet is slightly softer and tastes a bit more nutty. It also is really good at absorbing liquid flavors.

But who are we to compare. The main thing is that it is nutritious and delicious so we will eat it.

Back to the salad. This is one of those grain salads that is good cooked and served warm but only gets better with a little age (like an hour or a day) in the fridge. Served hot or cold or room tempature, and is hearty enough to be meal like but is also a fantastic addition as a side to any of you meal plans. Like maybe a BBQ? Whatever the occasion, or non occasion, this is just a really good grain salad situation and I think you will be pleased, smiling all smiles while eating it.

To the millet salad.

The stuff. Millet, a couple handful of greens, a few mushrooms, an onion, dijon mustard, a little maple syrup, red wine vinegar, a lemon, a couple cloves or garlic, some toasted sunflower seeds, and salt and pepper.

Start by giving the millet a little toast, just enough to really up the nutty flavor and make it that much more yummy. It only takes a few minutes in a skillet on medium heat. Not an entirely necessary step, but you should do it.

Toasted millet goes into pot with water. Bring pot to a boil and then turn to the lowest simmer and cover.

While millet is cooking, get to the mushrooms and onions. Chop the onion thin and small and the mushrooms thin and small as well. Place them into the skillet with a drizzle of oil and place on medium heat. Mix around every now and then and cook until the mushrooms and onions are soft and a nice golden brown.

And make the vinaigrette. Minced garlic, mustard, vinegar, the juice of the lemon, and maple syrup get put into one place.

Mixed and now all is one.

Millet. Cooked and fluffed and ready to go.

Cooked mushrooms and onions go into the pot, along with the greens, the sunflower seed, and the vinaigrette. This step can be right away or you can wait a little while for things to cool as to not wilt the greens. Up tp you.

Mixed with love and hunger.

Even if you are making it ahead of time, just do yourself a favor. Grab a bowl, grab a fork, and get down on it.

-C

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Millet with mushrooms, onions, Greens and a mustard vinaigrette

Seves 4-6

• 3/4 cup uncooked millet

• 2 cups water

• 1 sweet onion

• 3-4 big button mushrooms

• Large handful or two of bitter greens like arugula, spinach or a mixture.

• 2 tablespoon brown or dijon mustard

• 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

• 1 teaspoon maple syrup

• 2 cloves garlic

• salt and pepper

• handful toasted sunflower seeds

To start, toast millet. Dump the uncooked millet into a pan and place on a medium heat tt for about 5 minutes or until you start hearing the millet crackle.This gives the millet a slightly more nutty flavor but you can skip this step if you don’t care.

Dump millet and water into medium pot. Place on high heat until water starts to boil then tun heat down to simmer and over. After about 15 or 20 minutes, when most of the water is gone, turn pot completely off. Let sit, covered for another 10ish minutes then take a fork and fluff it.

While the millet is cooking, cook the veggies. Grab the onion and slice it up into thin pieces. Clean off the mushrooms and chop them into small thin pieces too. Place the chopped stuff into the skillet with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and place on a medium heat. Stir occasionally and cook for about 15 minutes or until the onion and mushroom are a nice dark, golden brown.

And make the mustard vinaigrette. Mince garlic and place into a jar or bowl with the vinegar, the mustard, the maple, and the juice of the lemon. Mix and set aside.

Once the millet is cooked, the mushrooms and onions are cooked, and the vinaigrette is made, all you have left to do is mix everything together. You can do this while things are slightly warm which will wilt the greens a bit, o let them cool so the greens stay fresh. Up to you. (I like the greens fresh)

Finally, dump cooked mushrooms and onions into pot with cooked millet. Add in the greens and sunflower seeds and drizzle the vinegertte all over. Toss around until fully mixed. Sprinkle with lots of fresh cracked pepper.

Then eat. Or place in a container to bring to the BBQ.

Slow Cooked Caraway Cabbage and Onions

 Cabbage is probably the number one eaten food in my house. It is not uncommon for us to go through a very large head a day. And I get that it may seem odd to you, but it's true. We are cabbage people, so much so that we will probably turn into cabbage patch people. I can see it now.

One of the reasons that we eat so much cabbage is that it is so versatile.. Raw, steamed, roasted, the possibilities are a plenty, not to mention that cabbage is pretty dang cheap. And not to far around the corner it is St Patrick's day when cabbage is basically given out for free. During this time I stock up, buy 100 lbs and ferment, roast, and peel my way through all of it. Is it sick that I am kind of excited about that ? (there are worse things to be excited about)

This cabbage dish is one of those dishes that can be eaten on it's own, as a side, or as a condiment. Topped on a salad, stuffed into a sandwich, or shoveled into the mouth. You really can't go wrong eating it anyway.

The stuff. Cabbage, onions, caraway seeds, salt and pepper, and some apple cider vinegar. (I accidentally grabbed the oil)

Shred up the cabbage and onions. Thin is good, but some bigger pieces are good too.

Into a big pot sprinkled with caraway, salt and pepper. A splash of water helps to get things started. Stickon a low heat topped with a lid.  And just let it be for a while butgive it a stir ever 10-15 minutes or so.

About an hour it's all cooked down and sweet and tasty as can be. A splash of vinegar finishes it off.

This batch was destined for the mr's open faced cheese sandwich. I thought I made enough to pack some for lunch, but
I ended up just eating the left overs for a snack. I don't know why I didn't make more.  Next batch I'll make it a double.

Happy day to you.

-C

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Slow Cooked Caraway Cabbage and Onions

makes about 2 cups

• 1 small or 1/2 a large head of cabbage
• 2 yellow onions
• 2 teaspoons caraway seeds
• 1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• olive oil for pot
• salt and pepper

Thinly shred the cabbage and thinly slice the onions. Dump the now shredded cabbage and onion into a large dutch oven or heavy bottom pot that has a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Sprinkle with caraways seeds and about a teaspoon salt, a good splash or water then mix around. Place pot on a low heat and cover. Let cook down for about 45 minutes to an hour , stirringever 10 minutes or so, until the mixture has shrunk to about 1/3 it's original size and is soft and tender. When just about done, mix in a tablespoon of the vinegar . Taste and season with more vinegar, salt and pepper if you like.

Eat as is or is or on salads, sandwiches or wraps.

Not Your Parents "Shit on a Shingle" (Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on Toast)

The other day the mister and I started reminiscing about some of our earliest memories of what our parents fed us or what they used to eat when we were growing up. One of the dishes that we both remember eating was the classic creamed beef on toast, or as my mom use to call it, shit on a shingle.   Yup, shit on a shingle. (who ever started calling creamed meat on toast is a freaking genius) I think that as a kid, I liked  the dish just for the mer fact that I could say the word shit and get away with it.  I think my mom liked it for few reasons; she could make a big butt load of it really fast, for a crap load of kids, on the super cheap. And I think that she just really like it.  

Shit on a shingle is one of those foods that I like to call "trash food", you know stuff like beefaroni or pork and beans. Stuff that we all loved as little kids but might think twice about feeding to anyone now. ( I'll still feed nick a can of beefaroni.. he likes it) As a throwback to our earliest food memories, (also a lack of food in the house and wanted to make something fast, easy, and cheap.. thanks mom!) I made the mister my rendition of the classic. Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on toast. Not quite as trashy as creamed beef (lentils, mushrooms and onions are not trashy) but you get the same reminiscing feeling. I guess I could call it something like "stuff on a shingle" or lumps on a shingle", but what kid (or adult)  would want to eat that. Let's just stick with shit, it makes it more awesome to eat it.

The shit….. A few mushrooms, a bit of onion, cooked lentils, flour, milk, oil, salt and pepper, and garlic powder. And the shingles.. 2 pieces of thick white country bread. Slice the mushrooms and the onion and toss into a skillet with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until browned and fragrant..Remove from pan.In the empty pan still on medium heat, add in the olive oil and the flour. Whisky constantly, slowly add in the milk. Keep whisking until sauce thickens. Remove from heat. Add in  salt, pepper, and garlic powder.Add the mushrooms and the lentils into the sauce and give it a good mix. Oh, and don't forget to  toast up the bread. Now dump that shit all over those shingles! Oh the memories.

If you need to, make it classy by serving it with a cloth napkin and a nice fork and knife. But eat it however you need to. (As kids we like dirty hands and no fork, preferably with a big tall glass of overly sweetened red flavored kool-aid)

Enjoy this fantastic Spring weekend!

-C

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 Shit on s Shingle (Creamy Lentils and Mushrooms on Toast)

One serving

• 1 cup cooked lentils
• 2- 3 mushrooms
• 1/2 small onion
• 1 cup milk (cow, nut, plant… whatever you want)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt and pepper
• 2 pieces of nice thick but soft white sandwich bread

Slice the mushroom and onion and toss into a pan or skillet with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until brown and fragrant than dump onto a plate. In same skillet, add the oil and the flour and mix with a whisk while slowly adding in the milk. Keep whisking until sauce starts to thicken. Turn heat to simmer and add in the cooked lentils and the sautéd mushrooms and onions. Push down the bread in the toaster.. and when it pops up, dump the shill over it.

Tarragon Butternut Squash and Onions

I know that it it spring, but I still have a winter farm share for another month and will be cooking and eating roots and squash until the summer share starts in early June. And I am good with that cause I love me some root veggies and butternut squash.  But, yes, it is spring and my body isn't craving the super hearty, rich foods that it was just a few short weeks ago (more like last week) When the temperatures first start to go up, I usually want my food to not feel as heavy or my spices to be quite at warming (I am still all over curries and hot hot hot sauces in the summer). It's like I have said before, I tend to change up my spices with the seasons.  

So to give a lighter feel to a heartier squash, I busted out one of my favorite spices, the oh so lovely tarragon. It has a sweet, light, fruity and floral taste that pairs beautifully with the squash and onions. It give the dish a nice spring like flavor that will leave you feeling satisfied without wanting to move directly onto the couch and hide under a blanket. This is a eat and ride you bike kind of dish ( you don't actually have to go for a bike ride if you don't want to)

Note. If I had a grill, I would definitely cook this dish on it. As of now, I don't own one so I am left to cook on the stove. But by all means, if you have a grill, do it up!

Half of a medium sized butternut squash (or use a whole one.. I had a half in the fridge that was waiting to be cooked)  and one whole onion (two if you use a whole squash)  Apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt , pepper, garlic powder, and, last but not least, the oh so fragrant and tasty, tarragon. 

Chop the onion  and the squash into big chunks. If you don't like the skin of the squash, you can peel it, but I like it so I don't peel. Drizzle olive oil in a pan or a baking sheet, toss the veggies in and add the garlic powder, tarragon, salt and pepper and a few splashes of apple cider vinegar. Toss around. Stick into oven at 425 degrees for about 30-40 minutes. When the squash is tender and the onions are cooked, remove from oven.  

I am pretty sure you can figure out the rest.

Happy day!

-C

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Tarragon Butternut and Onions

• Half of Medium Butternut Squash
• 1 Large Onion
• 1 Tablespoon Dried Tarragon (use fresh if you have it.. 2 tablespoons)
• 2 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• Salt ans Pepper
• Olive Oil

Chop squash and onions into similar size pieces. Toss in a skillet or on a oiled baking sheet and add the rest of the ingredients. Toss around and place into a 425 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes or until squash is fork tender.  

Remove from oven and eat.

 Make as a side dish or add to a salad. Eat as a light lunch, or a midnight snack… eat it however you want.