burnt toast

Tag: caramelised onion

September 15, 2013

Fridays

sour cream pizza with red wine onions and rocket

I like Fridays.  Friday afternoons. I like them best when I can share them with a good friend or two. I’ll whip up some sexy little cocktail and lay out something delicious and carb – based, like this sour cream pizza with red wine caramelized onions and rocket, yes sir. In case you were wondering, this is a radified version of the already quite mesmerizing Germain Flammkuchen, minus the cheese or the lardons.

And then we all eat and drink to our heart’s content and live happily ever after. It’s that good.

Sour Cream Pizza with Red Wine Onions and Rocket

Pizza dough

2 cups / 300g plain flour

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 sachet / 7g instant dried yeast

180 ml warm water, plus more if necessary

3 large red onions, halved and thinly sliced

3 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp soy sauce

50ml/ a splash of red wine

salt and pepper

250g sour cream

2 handfuls of rocket

Alright, lets start with the dough. Me and this recipe are pretty close chums at this point, because I make it at least once a week. You should too. Combine the flour, oil, salt, sugar and yeast in a big bowl. Stir in the water with a bread knife until roughly combined, then get your hands in there and knead it until it’s smooth. Cover with cling wrap and set aside in a warm place until doubled in size. Alternatively, cover and place in the fridge overnight for a slow rise. Whatever works best for you my pretty.

Next, ze onions. Throw them into a large fry pan with the olive oil and cook them slowly until soft and golden. At this point, add in the soy sauce and the red wine and let the liquids bubble away, until you’re left with a deliciously aromatic burgundy mess. Season with salt and pepper and cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 200°C. If you’re a proud owner of round pizza trays, get them out, otherwise, if you’re like me, use two rectangular ones. Grease them with butter – I find the dough has a much better grip on a buttered tray, rather than an oiled one.  Divide your dough into two and roll out in your tins. I usually use a round drinking glass for this. Schmear the sour cream evenly over the dough with a spoon, then spread over the onion. Bake in the oven for about 12 – 15 minutes, or until the edges are golden. Remove from the oven, top with the rocket, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Yum.

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January 18, 2013

Delish.

caramelised onion and goat's cheese tarts

Sweet, meltingly soft onion, crisp buttery pastry, salty tangy goat’s cheese and the heat of cracked black pepper, the aroma of fresh thyme wafting up your nose, into the back of your head, into your heart, into your stomach, making you giddy with desire.

Have another one. I know you want to.

Caramelised Onion and Goat’s Cheese tartlets

Makes 18

Just a note on the puff pastry. The stuff we get here is different in size to what I used to get in Switzerland, so I’m sure this varies everywhere. The sheets I work with are 25cm x 25cm, so adjust accordingly.

2 sheets frozen puff pastry

6 large onions, halved and finely sliced

30g butter

3 Tbsp each of olive oil and water

2 teaspoons honey

2 tsp vegetable stock granules

3 Tbsp soy sauce

pepper

salt, if needed

1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme, plus extra for garnish

50-100g soft goat’s cheese, depending on how intense you want it

Take your puff pastry out of the freezer and let it thaw while you get on with the rest of the recipe.

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Combine onions, butter, oil and water in a big frying pan. Cover and cook over low heat until onion has softened. Remove lid and add honey, stock granules, soy sauce, pepper and thyme and cook until they have taken on a lovely caramel brown colour. Remove from heat.

Cut each pastry sheet into 9 squares and prick them with a fork so they don’t puff up like crazy. Lay them out on a baking sheet. Pop in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden. Take them out and let them cool down.

To assemble, Top each square of pastry with some of the onion, then sprinkle over some goat’s cheese. Top with a few little leaves of the thyme and you’re ready to go.

These are best eaten on the day they are made. Not as if you’d let them last that long anyway.

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August 15, 2012

Dip that thing.

I love tapas. Mezze. Antipasti. Amuse-bouches. Nibbly finger food. The variety, the mix and match nature of it all. Calling this my favourite dip would be like favouring a child, so instead what I will say is this: This is my favourite dip of the sour cream and caramelised onion category. And I love it with all my heart.

Caramelised Onion Dip

2 medium onions, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp honey

250g sour cream

1 Tbsp mayo (because mayo makes everything taste good. In a secret, subtle sort of way)

1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard

chopped parsley

Combine the onions, a splash of water and a glug of oil in a small frypan and cook on a low heat with the lid on until onion has softened. Remove lid and continue cooking, on a higher flame now, until liquid has evaporated and onions are beginning to go light brown. Add the soy and the honey and stir until dark and sticky and caramelised. Cool slightly.

Combine the onion with the sour cream, mayo, and mustard. Adjust the seasoning, then transfer to a bowl and top with the chopped parsley to make it look pretty.

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