My New Obsession... Onion Marmalade

My boss made meatloaf sandwiches on Monday and one of the condiments she used was onion marmalade mixed with a bit of mayonnaise. It was like heaven; slightly sweet, slightly tart with that wonderful earthy oniony taste. So I've been addicted ever since. Yesterday I had to have a grilled cheese sandwich with the addition of the marmalade.

I know I could go out and buy the stuff, but I've made jam before, so I decided to take a crack at it. I combined a few different recipes to fit my tastes.

About.com Onion Marmalade Recipe

Group Recipes Onion Jam Recipe

Recipe Zaar Red Onion Jam Recipe

Here's what I did


Red Onion Marmalade:

Ingredients:
2 Large red onions (chopped)
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 bottle white wine ( I used Charles Shaw Chardonnay because I think $2 wine is more than enough for a condiment)
1 c water
1/2 c sugar
2 T red wine vinegar
1 T olive oil
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper

Directions:

Heat medium, non reactive saucepan to medium low heat and add olive oil
Add chopped onions and garlic and saute, stirring often, until they become translucent, 10-15 minutes
Add remaining ingredients and cook covered for 30 minutes
Turn on exhaust fan, this can get stinky
Uncover pan and turn heat to medium
Cook an additional 45-60 minutes, stirring periodically to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom, until the liquid has reduced and sauce seems syrupy
This will thicken more upon cooling as well

This should keep for a few weeks in a closed container. It can be used on a variety of meets as a condiment or addition to a sauce. I like it mixed with mayo, but it can also be mixed with cream cheese for a dip. Enjoy

Pureed Kohlrabi

While at the farmer's market this weekend I decided I wanted to try out some new vegetables. One of the most interesting veggies was the kohlrabi; it looks like a little green heart with it's ventricles shooting out into leaves. It was so interesting to me I had to purchase it. I had never seen or heard of kohlrabi before and the person working the stand couldn't tell me much about it, but I knew that Google could. So into my canvas bag it went.

While searching for kohlrabi recipes I found many of the recipes used the kohlrabi only as an addition to a salad, soup or stew. I wanted it as a side dish, but I wanted it to play the main part. That's when I happened upon this recipe from Farmgirl Fare. She even says "For the only thing you should ever be doing with kohlrabi is turning it into puree. Trust me." I trust you Farmgirl, I do. So I began the process of pureeing kohlrabi.

Ingredients:

4 kohlrabi bulbs with leaves

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil1 large onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c cultivated mushrooms (I used cremini and oyster), quartered

3 Tablespoons cream (or milk, chicken stock, olive oil, or water) I used skim milk

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

*Trim the kohlrabi bulbs, peeling them if the skins seem tough. Rinse the leaves (discarding any that are yellow) pat them dry, and coarsely chop. Set aside. But the bulbs into 1-inch chunks.

*Bring a saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil, and add the kohlrabi chunks. Reduce the heat and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.

*Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet. Add the onion and saute over medium-low heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, another 1 to 2 minutes. Do not let garlic brown.

*Add the mushrooms and the reserved kohlrabi leaves to the skillet. Cover, and cook 5 minutes. Then uncover, and cook, stirring, until all the liquid has evaporated, 3 minutes. Set the skillet aside.

*Drain the kohlrabi chunks and place them in the bowl of a food processor

At this point she suggests blending everything together, but I blended the chunks alone and they turn into this beautiful light green puree with a lovely mild broccoli taste.

Then I added the dark green leave and mushroom puree mixture

*Transfer the puree to a saucepan and reheat over low heat, stirring, 2 minutes.
*Makes 6 portions

I will definitely make kohlrabi again. I think that next time I will use the leaves as greens and just use the bulb for the puree because it really was so tasty.

Grilled Beets and Greens

At the farmer's market this weekend I picked up some fresh beets because my husband loves them and I've never cooked them fresh before. We also got a new grill so we've been grilling everything we can. So I figured, why not grill some beets? The other great thing about beets is that the greens are edible too, so it's like having 2 completely different vegetables from the same plant.

Grilled Beets
INGREDIENTS:

4 fresh beets (peeled and sliced)
1 clove garlic
2 T olive oil
2 T balsamic
pinch of s & p
(1 t olive oil and 1 t balsamic for dressing)

DIRECTIONS:
Marinate beets 1 hour or up to 8 hours
Remove beets from marinade and place in foil and wrap up
Grill over medium for 25 minutes brushing with remaining marinade every 5 minutes or so
Remove from foil and place beets directly on grill for 1-2 minutes on each side
Remove from grill and dress with olive oil and balsamic and season with s & p to taste if needed

Beet Greens
INGREDIENTS:

Beet greens removed from root and chopped (cut off all large stems)
1/2 onion chopped
1 T butter or margarine or olive oil
s & p to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Saute onions in butter over medium low heat until translucent
Add greens and saute until soft, 7-10 minutes
Add s & p to taste

You can also cook beet greens as you would any other greens, with yummy bacon or even a little bit of vinegar. But do not over cook! The greens get bitter when over cooked, so just let them get soft and then remove them from heat. Enjoy!

Mushroom Barley Risotto

I love to use different grains as substitutions for rice and pasta. My favorites are barley and quinoa. I also have this thing about not serving the same type of starch 2 nights in a row (or proteins or veggies for that matter) so I try to get creative with what I have.
Barley keeps a really good texture and it's pretty forgiving. It gets starchy but not too incredibly gummy when overcooked. And you can use it pretty much as you would rice. It has a nice nutty flavor so it adds an extra oomph to a recipe.

I used a Tyler Florence recipe from Food Network (I also included the recipe below) and halved it; and substituted the barley for the rice, of course. I only used crimini mushrooms, but I've used all different types in this sort of thing before, so feel free to play. I also used a little less broth than was called for. You'll notice in the recipe that you add 1 cup of liquid at a time, I start with 1 cup and add another every 15 minutes, simmering a total of 45 minutes. I used a total of about 3 1/3 cups stock. I did use about 1/3 c wine though, what can I say, I'm a lush.

Ingredients

• 4 cups chicken broth, low sodium
• 1 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1/2 onion, diced, divided
• 1 garlic cloves, minced, divided
• 8 oz crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoons butteror margerine
  
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon truffle oil
• 1 cup barley
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 cup fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
• Fresh Italian parsley, for garnish

Directions

Heat the chicken broth in a medium saucepan and keep warm over low heat.( I just added mine cold)

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1/2 onion and 1 clove garlic, cook, stirring, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the fresh mushrooms, herbs and butter. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes until lightly browned, season with salt and pepper. Drizzle in truffle oil. Saute 1 minute then remove from heat and set aside.

Coat a saucepan with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Saute the remaining 1/2 onion and garlic clove. Add the barley and stir quickly until it is well-coated, 1 minute. This step cooks the starchy coating and prevents the grains from sticking. Stir in wine and cook until it is nearly all evaporated.

Now, with a ladle, add 1 cup of the broth and cook, stirring. Add the remaining broth, 1 cup at a time. Continue to cook and stir, allowing the barley to absorb each addition of broth before adding more. The risotto should be slightly firm and creamy, not mushy. Transfer the mushrooms to the rice mixture. Stir in Parmesan cheese, cook briefly until melted. Top with a drizzle of truffle oil and chopped parsley before serving.

It turned out pretty darn perfect. I had it again for dinner tonight mixed with some chopped spinach. Holla! That was some good barley.
Enjoy.

What What in the Butternut

I purchased some butternut squash about a week ago for the purpose of making a soup or just as a side. I never did either of those things so I've had these huge squash in my refrigerator taking up precious vegetable space. So last night I decided I would stuff them with some left over rice.

I used this recipe as a guide but mine looks a bit different. I still wanted to have the squash as a main vegetable so I didn't hollow it out all the way. I didn't have cranberries so I used dried apricots and I used far less onions, maybe about 1/2 a cup. I also used brown rice instead of basmati. I cut the squash in half, then microwaved for 10 minutes. Then I sauteed the onions, apricots and garlic and mixed in the rice. I stuffed these babies, and baked for 25 minutes at 375.
This, again, is one of those versatile dishes you can play around with.

If I had bought these for the purpose of stuffing I thing I would have used dried pears, pecans and fresh sage.


I served mine with tangelo glazed chicken (about 1/4 c juice from a tangelo off my tree in the backyard, 1 clove chopped garlic, a few red pepper flakes and s & p. Brown the chicken and garlic then pour the juice over and let it reduce to a glaze, 10 minutes.) and green beans.

The Beautiful Brussel Sprout

I love Sundays because I love to peruse the bounty of fresh foods and goods at the local farmers' market. I especially love this time of year because the weather is finally nice and the market is packed with vendors and consumers, it's just a good time.

My favorite items this week were the brussel sprouts. I feel so naive, but I never knew they grew on stalks, it just didn't occur to me. And the funny thing is that I absolutely love brussel sprouts.

I find that a lot of people despise brussel sprouts, my husband included. I think it's because he, and a lot of other people, only had them boiled or steamed rendering them brown, limp, slimy and bitter. Ewww and double ewww!

There are a few ways to make this vegetable spectacular. There is the creamy gratin version, which isn't the healthiest, but it's a good way to test out these baby cabbages if you are the faint of heart. Personally, I like to roast them, quick and easy.

INGREDIENTS:

15-20 brussel sprouts
1 T olive oil
Salt and Pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350
Oil a baking sheet
Slice sprouts in 1/2
Layer flat side down on sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper
Roast about 20 minutes, but don't let the leaves get too brown, a nice golden brown is good
Enjoy! This is a simple and clean dish.

(I have to give props to my boss for this little preparation recipe, she made me fall in love with brussel sprouts again)

Potato Gratin

Potato gratin can be a pretty unhealthy dish when you factor in butter, cream, and cheese. There's also the fact that people still seem to be scared of eating all that starch, even though potatoes are packed with nutrients. I love it. I think it's a fab side dish and it makes a nice presentation. It looks way more complicated than it actually is and it's guaranteed to taste great.






INGREDIENTS:
4 white rose or other starchy potatoes, sliced thin
2 garlic cloves chopped
2 T flour
1/2 c skim milk
1/2 c shredded Parmesan
2 T seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/8 t nutmeg
cooking spray

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375
Slice potatoes thinly about 1/8"
Spray a non stick pan with cooking spray and warm over medium heat
Add garlic to pan and cook until slightly colored, DO NOT BURN
Add milk and nutmeg to pan and cook for about 5 minutes, turn heat down if it starts to burn
In a zipper bag put flour, about 1/3 c of the cheese, salt and pepper
Turn off stove and let milk cool
Toss potatoes into the pan to coat with milk (there will be milk left over)
Then toss the milk coated potatoes in the bag to coat with flour and cheese
Arrange the potatoes in a glass dish about 8x4x3" or a loaf pan (you can use 8x8 too, but the gratin will be flat) so that the potatoes overlap in layers
If there is any cheesy stuff at the bottom of the bag just toss that in the dish
Cover potatoes with remaining milk
Cover dish with foil and cook for 40 minutes
Remove cover and add remaining ,sprinkle top with breadcrumbs and cook an additional 10 minutes

I served mine with baked pork chops, white wine and onion reduction, and asparagus. It's a versatile side dish so it can be served with pretty much anything.