Caramelized Onions

After my brother's birthday party, I went home with a bunch of produce from our family's garden (special thanks to my uncles and grandparents!). Faced with the challenge of using boatloads of onions, I decided to caramelize a big batch of them.

Caramelized onions are deliciously sweet, and a wonderful addition to many dishes. They are also very simple to make.

Caramelized Onions

Ingredients:

-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

-3 tbsp unsalted butter

-approximately 15 medium sized onions (6 lbs)

-1 tsp sea salt

Instructions:

1. Prep and slice onions into quarters.

2. In a large saute pan, melt butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened and begin to brown.

3. Use them to make something delicious!

Pictures and Tips:

Step 1. Prep the onions. These were fresh from the garden, so they involved slightly more trimming/washing than is necessary for onions purchased from the store. I used a combination of white, yellow and red onions...use your favorite kind, or mix and match.

I may or may not have brought my cutting board outside to maximize what is left of the gettable sun rays...I also find that wearing my sunglasses (or eye wear of any kind) helps reduce the tear-factor that is usually involved with working with onions, especially a large quantity of onions.

I was watching Food Network earlier and Paula Deen had these on. Have you tried them or a similar product? What did you think?

Step 2. Melt the butter and olive together over medium-low heat. I like the combination of butter and olive oil...olive oil has a higher burn temperature, and the butter adds great flavor.

Ready for deliciousness.

Add in the onions and salt. Use a spatula to occasionally stir the onions and break apart the pieces.

Continue to cook the onions over medium-low heat. They will soften and begin to turn a golden brown color. At this point, they are sweet and ready to offer great flavor to a recipe of your choosing.

Step 3. Use the caramelized onions to make something delicious! On this particular evening, I have a major craving for pizza...so the onions became a wonderful pizza topping.

I made whole wheat sourdough pizza crust and the pizzas were cooked out on the grill....if you haven't tried this method, give it a whirl...you can create a cooking environment with a very high temperature (ideal for pizza), and you don't have to heat up your kitchen on an already hot day.

My pizza. Yum.


I hope you enjoy this simple recipe and use it to inspire some fabulous recipes of your own. Some other great uses for these onions: use as a burger topper, combine with parmesan cheese and fresh herbs for a simple pasta dish, or use them to make a delicious tart. Here is one tart recipe idea from Food Network.

Thanks for visiting,

-The Delicious Dabbler