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caramelized onions

The simplest way to add a "wow" factor to an ordinary sandwich is caramelized onions. They are smokey, sweet and incredibly simple to make! You can put them on almost anything from omelettes to pizzas and they taste terrific with most meats and cheese and a variety of vegetables as well. Although their natural flavor is wonderful, you can up the ante with a splash of balsamic, honey or whiskey. In addition, a sprinkle of spices or bacon crumbles are also fantastic. Due to the endless combinations and variations, they may be my favorite condiment of all time.

I usually make a nice big batch of caramelized onions and dole them out onto various creations over the week. Refrigerate in an air-tight container. 

Ingredients:
2 Spanish onions
2 tablespoons olive oil

Slice the onions very thinly. This ensures that they caramelize quickly. Place a pan over medium-heat and add the olive oil. Add the onions and toss to coat them in the oil.

Allow the onions to cook for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring them frequently to allow for even caramelizing. Once the color of the onions begins to darken, splash with whatever vinegar or liquor you'd like for added flavor. Hold off on adding any spices until the very end. Once the onions are a burnt caramel color, remove from heat and allow to cool. Then add them to anything you desire and enjoy.

cornbread croutons

Ages ago I made a jalepeno cornbread to pair with a harvest turkey chili. It was beautiful and delicious but there was one problem. I had a gallon of chili, a 9" skillet of cornbread and only two diners. While the chili seemed to improve with each day, the cornbread did not. I was force to wrap half of the remaining bread in foil, then bag and freeze it. Then one day I decided to thaw out the old bread and make some interesting croutons! Here lie the delicious and colorful results.

My recipe yields around 2 cups of croutons.

Ingredients:
1/2 9" round cornbread
2 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste.


Preheat your oven to 400°.

Cut your cornbread into cubes. I prefer to keep mine a little larger, otherwise they tend to crumble apart. Place the cornbread cubes on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil and salt and pepper lightly. Very gently toss the cubes in the oil and seasoning. I used my fingers to minimize any crumbling. 

Place the cubes in the oven and toast for 15-20 minutes, turning them several times to allow for even browning. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and sprinkle on a salad, chili or whatever you desire! Here's how I used mine.

spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

Spinach is not the easiest salad green to work with. Once cooked, it melts into a smooth, buttery green that works perfectly in stir fries and other dishes, but when it is raw it can be rather gritty and unpalatable. Fear not though, once paired with right flavors and textures, spinach transforms into the perfect nutritious bed.

In order to amplify the natural savoriness of spinach, I added a bacon and shallot vinaigrette, crumbled bacon, and some blue cheese. Crunchy corn bread croutons and roasted beets add layers of sweetness and a fine buttery essence. Not to mention, the colors are beautiful!

This recipe makes 4 salads.

Ingredients:

4 oz organic baby spinach leaves

4 ounces bacon, chopped

1 large shallot, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 red beets

1/4 cup blue cheese

1 cup cornbread croutons

Salt & pepper

Begin by roasting your beets. Preheat the oven to 425°. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Rub your beets with a little olive oil, massaging the oil into the skin. Place the on the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the size of the beets. Turn the beets occasionally to ensure even roasting. Once they are tender, remove them from the oven and fold the tinfoil around them. Leave for 10 minutes. Slice the beats into 1/4" thick steaks and salt and pepper. Set aside.

Set a pan over medium-high. Place the diced bacon in the pan and cook until crispy and brown. Remove the bacon crumbles and set aside on a paper towel. Drain the pan so all but 3 tablespoons remain in the pan. Add the minced shallot and cook until clear and fragrant, around ten minutes. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Reduce the heat.

Now it's time to plate your salads. Evenly distribute the baby spinach among four plates. Lay two slices of beets on each plate. Sprinkle the bacon crumbles and the bleu cheese evenly. Add a few croutons to each salad. Ladle the dressing over each salad, ensuring an even shallot to liquid ratio. Serve the salad with steak knifes for the beets and dig in!

whiskey cookie sandwiches

What is it about adding an alcoholic beverage to a recipe that makes it so wonderful? It seems as though every one of my favorite dishes requires wine or bourbon or a dense stout. I don't think I've ever made anything with Jack Daniels before, but now that I've started I'm not going to stop. The natural sweetness in whiskey blends perfectly with the nuttiness of the oats and warmth of the brown sugar in the cookies allotting for a burnt caramel flavor that tantalizes the taste buds. The Swiss meringue filling adds a soft, pillow of sweetness that includes yet more whiskey. Incredible! I cannot wait to try out more sweet whiskey-laden dishes, like Jack Daniel's maple syrup on pecan pancakes - perfect for a Saturday morning! For the perfect St Patrick's Day treat, try using an Irish whiskey like Jameson. 

I took this recipe from food + words and made minimal adjustments. My kitchen is scarcely equipped and I found myself regretting my lack of a standing mixer, however, I made do with a handheld.

This recipe makes approximately 24 sandwiches.

Ingredients:

Cookies:

1 13 C Flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda, scant

2 teaspoons cinnamon

dash ground cloves

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 C sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon molasses

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 teaspoons whole milk or half and half

1 tablespoon whiskey

2 C rolled oats

Filling:

2 egg whites

1/2 C sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 T whiskey

1 teaspoon vanilla 

Preheat oven to 375° F.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves. Stir to combine and set aside.

In a separate, larger bowl combine the butter, sugar and salt. Stir until pale and fluffy. 

Add the eggs one at a time. Make sure the first egg is fully incorporated before adding the second one. Add the molasses, vanilla, milk and whiskey. Stir until just combined.

Slowly begin to add the dry ingredients, stirring as you add. Mix until just combined into a soft dough.

Using a teaspoon, drop the cookies on the baking sheet, keeping a 2 inch space in between. Be sure to keep the cookies the same size. It helps to flatten the cookies a bit with a fork, so the sandwiches aren't too voluminous. 

Bake the cookies until they are light brown and crisped at the edges, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 3 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool thoroughly.

Meanwhile, make the meringue. Fill a saucepan with 2-3 inches of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so the water is at a simmer. In a metal bowl, combine the egg whites, sugar and salt. Place the metal bowl inside the pan, careful to ensure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Continually whisk the meringue until the sugar dissolves completely. 

Once the mixture is smooth, remove the bowl from the pan. Using a handheld or standing mixer, whisk the mixture until it becomes a fluffy and voluminous meringue, 8-12 minutes. Add the whiskey, vanilla and molasses and whisk until combined. If the mixture is a little thin, refrigerate for about 20 minutes. 

Now it is time to assemble the sandwiches. If you have the equipment, a piping bag is very helpful here. However, I did just fine with a teaspoon, though my end result wasn't as lovely as it could have been. Also, it's helpful to line the surface you are working on with parchment paper. The meringue is very sticky.

Place one cookie on a plate with the bottom facing up. Drop a teaspoon of filling on top and squish it with a second cookie. Repeat until all sandwiches are assembled.

The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature and 4 days refrigerated  I doubt anyone will ever be able to keep them around that long.

flaky chocolate-orange scones

When offered an array of breakfast pastries, scones are usually my last choice. I've always found them rather dry and chalky. Yesterday, I received an newsletter with a scone recipe from Williams-Sonoma's Tasting Table. I decided to make some adjustments and give it a try. After tasting these sweet, butter-laden scones I've officially been converted. Rather than a parched crumble, these scones are fluffy, flaky and the flavor is both rich and delicate. If chocolate and orange aren't a favorite of yours, try any seasonal mix-in such as dried fruit, nuts or some maple syrup and cinnamon chips.

I highly recommend pairing these with a fresh and bold cup of coffee. This recipe makes 8 large scones, but you can easily adapt it for smaller scones. Just make sure you adjust the baking time.

Ingredients:

3 C all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 C brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 stick plus 4 T unsalted butter, softened

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 C heavy whipping cream, plus extra for brushing

Finely grated zest of 1 small orange

3/4 C dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate

Granulated sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350°.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. I despise cleaning sifters, so I usually use a mesh strainer instead. Stir in the sugar and salt. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, work in the butter until there are no pieces larger than a small pea. Combine 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and the buttermilk. Slowly pour the liquid into the bowl, using a rubber spatula to gently fold the mixture together just until there are no more dry spots.

Lightly flour your working service. Place the dough on your surface and use your fingers to gently mix in the chocolate and orange zest.

Form the dough into a 2 inch thick disk. Using a knife or a pastry cutter, cut the dough into 8 triangles of equal size. Using a pastry brush, lightly coat each scone with the remaining heavy cream. Sprinkle each scone  with a bit of sugar.

Bake the scones until they are golden and crisp, about 22-25 minutes. Allow to cool for 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool until room temperature. Enjoy!

drying herbs

There is no substitute for fresh herbs, however, stores tend to sell them in larger quantities than one needs and they certainly don't stay fresh for long. Rather than tossing the leftovers, drying them for later use is an eco-friendly and cost-efficient alternative. The process is very easy Not to mention, they make your kitchen smell fantastic. 

Ingredients and tools:

Fresh herbs

Thread

Scissors

Separate the herbs into small piles. I chose rosemary since I had a lot left after making a chocolate rosemary ganache. The sprigs are rather large so I only used two per bundle. However, if you're using a more slender herb, such as thyme, there should be 3-5 sprigs per bundle. The point is not to overcrowd the herbs for to allow them to dry thoroughly.

Cut a piece of thread about 14 inches in length for each bundle. Tie the bundles at the ends. You want to have enough room before the tie so that the herbs don't fall out, but near enough to the end that they hang straight down. Tie the tail of the thread into a loop. Hang the herbs whereever you'd like and allow to dry for 2-3 weeks, depending on the humidity level. At this time of year in Chicago, you could allow the herbs to dry for less time because of the lack of moisture in the air. It is safest to wait at least 2 weeks, otherwise the herbs may mold.

Once the herbs are dry, strip the sprigs and store in an airtight container for year-round flavor!