I dream of Onions.

From the country...

red cipollini onion

white pearl onion

"sturon" onions ready to harvest

green onions and fresh onions freshly harvested

nimble little fingers perfect for cleaning green onions...

freshly cleaned onions ready for market

It wasn't that long ago that I was dreaming about onions and it is nice to see things come to fruition. It is no secret that I LOVE onions (like love, love, love them...). Everything good starts with onions.. and garlic but that is another romance story. I am especially eager to try the cipollini onions which are still finishing up out in the patch.

Here are some really great onion recipes:

 This tart looks amazing for using cauliflowers and onions
This potato salad uses pickled green onions
and these blue cheese and scallion drop biscuits look-to-die for.
This dish combines oven roasted cipollini onions and cherry tomatoes- which I can't wait to try.

Oh! and last but not least, this recipe is for a shallot, and beer marmalade with prunes and cocoa nibs. I have all the ingredients for this- just need the time... can't wait.



special thanks to the recipes from Smitten Kitchen and David Lebovitz- two great blogs worth checking out...

Market Fresh Recipe #1. Frisee Salad with Bacon- Shallot Vinaigrette

From the country...

I found this tasty recipe here. It looks super tasty and I will have to try it next week (will keep you posted.. literally). I will be selling a shwack of these tasty bitter buddies at the market tomorrow and thought I would post a recipe for my customers.

Ingredients

• 3 slice(s) bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 12 ounce(s) (2 to 3 heads) frisée or 2 bags (5 to 6 oz. each) mixed baby salad greens
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• 2 tablespoon(s) white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon(s) Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) pepper
• 2 tablespoon(s) olive oil
• 6 large eggs

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Directions

1. In 2-quart saucepan, cook bacon on medium 5 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally.
2. Meanwhile, in 12-inch skillet, heat 1 inch water to boiling on high to poach eggs in later. Trim and discard stem ends from frisée; cut leaves into bite-size pieces. Place greens in large bowl.
3. Remove saucepan from heat. With slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels to drain; discard all but 1 tablespoon bacon fat.
4. Into bacon fat remaining in skillet, whisk shallot, vinegar, Dijon, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper. In slow, steady stream, whisk in oil until combined. Add warm vinaigrette to bowl with frisée and toss until evenly coated.
5. Reduce skillet heat to medium to maintain water at gentle simmer. Break eggs, one at a time, into cup. Holding cup close to surface of water, slip in each egg. Cook eggs 3 to 5 minutes or until whites are set and yolks begin to thicken. With slotted spoon, lift out each egg and quickly drain, still in spoon, on paper towels.
6. To serve, divide frisée among 6 salad plates; top with bacon and egg. Sprinkle egg with coarsely ground black pepper if you like.

Let me know how it turns out!

Once Upon An Onion Crop....

From the country... Cippolini onions, bunching onions, pearl onions, shallots, multiplier onions, and yellow onion sets. With names like; Red Creole, Barletta, Red Marble, Borrettana, Ramrod, and Summer Isle. Yep, I LOVE onions. I love sowing the seed, planting the set, plucking them from the soil, and eating them in all their various forms. There is something about growing alliums that makes me weak in the knees but I might have gone a bit overboard on them this year. I have my work cut out for me, not to mention the fact that I have blown the budget on these sharp little devils. I can't wait to see their wispy green hairs break the soil. I can't wait for the first green onion, the first taste of fresh grilled onion, and storage onions nestled in their mesh bag in the pantry. So to my friends and family, I apologize now because come the summer/fall I will definitely have a bad case of onion breath.

Onions, garlic and chives, oh my!

From the Country…
There is nothing better than planting onions in the cool springtime earth. One of my favourite vegetables to grow is alliums. Onions are part of the Lily family, Liliaceae, whose other tasty members includes leeks, garlic, shallots (the head of the family, in terms of flavour), chives and asparagus.

I personally could dine with this family for every meal but I would probably live a solemn life with a bad case of halitosis. A firm belief of mine is, that every good recipe starts with one or two of these pungent allium partners. My Auntie Ann used to work as a bank teller and the lady who often worked next to her would complain when my Aunt ate onions/garlic the night before. My Auntie Ann would explain about having to eat her onion-laden meals when she wasn’t working the following day. I would have eaten more and wore a garlic wreath around my neck. My Grandmother talks of a cooking show she used to watch were the chef wouldn’t date a woman if her cupboards were missing onions and garlic. I always laugh when she tells me the story because I totally understand. The waft of onions and garlic in a skillet makes me instantly hungry.

When I came across beautiful sets of multiplier onions at the feed store, I couldn’t resist taking them home, digging a trench and plopping these hopefuls in the soil. After planting the onions, I spent time gazing at the garlic, newly emerged from the soil. We had planted the garlic in the fall and every year I wait patiently for the greens to break ground. I wandered over to the chives to see how far along they were. Still tiny but coming, you really can’t rush Mother Nature, give them a week or so and we will be in chive business. Chive salad dressing, baked potatoes and chives, scrambled eggs with chives… Some people revel in planting bulbs for a colourful display of flowers but what really excites me is pulling a ripe garlic from the ground, drying out a crop of shallots, baking a creamy dish of leeks, snipping chives on top of a fresh salad and a hot skillet of asparagus and garlic scapes. Viva spring! Welcome back alliums!

“The kitchen, reasonably enough, was the scene of my first gastronomic adventure. I was on all fours. I crawled into the vegetable bin, settled on a giant onion and ate it, skin and all. It must have marked me for life, for I have never ceased to love the hearty flavor of raw onions.” James Beard (1903-1985)