Carmelized onions

There is no end to what you can do with carmelized onions -- they are sweet and savory, can dress up most meats, can be used in appetizers, or as a delicious dressing for pasta. Once you have the technique down, the possibilities are limitless.

The three essential ingredients are yellow onions (NOT Vidalia or some other "sweet" onion, which end up being a bit too sweet and watery to achieve the right texture -- just regular old yellow onions), olive oil and salt. After that, you can dress them up as you see fit. I have some suggestions below, but these are just to get you started and pique your imagination.

To make about 1 cup of carmelized onions, follow these instructions:

In an oversized frying pan, or some sort of pan in which you have a large cooking surface and can saute, heat up 4 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.

Take four jumbo-sized yellow onions or 6 large ones, peel them, cut in half length-wise, and cut into 1/8 inch slices.

Pile these on top of the heated oil, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of salt.

Toss the onions so they are coated in salt and oil, and cover the pan. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let them sweat for 10-15 minutes, until the water releases from the onions, and they start to really cook down.

Then remove the lid, and turn the heat up ever so slightly, still keeping it below medium heat. Let them continue to cook, slowly evaporating the liquid, and every five minutes, toss them thoroughly. After about 30 minutes, perhaps longer, they will become nice and rich-golden brown. Be careful never to let them start to burn and crisp. If this starts to happen, lower the heat and be patient. This process is best described as low and slow -- you need to spend the time necessary to let the sugars really develop in the onions as they brown and soften. The finished consistency will resemble a good orange marmalade.

These onions, just as they are, make a delicious relish for beef, chicken, and pork. Indeed, nothing's better on a burger than a big helping of carmelized onions. You can dress them up a bit by adding some thyme, balsamic vinegar, lemon rind, and/or pepper. Really, the sky's the limit in terms of flavoring them up, but I urge restraint so that you don't overpower the taste of the carmelized onions themselves. They are delicious.

Other ideas for carmelized onions:

As a pizza topping -- skip the sauce and cover your crust with these onions and then sprinkle with your favorite cheese before baking -- gongonzola and gruyere are popular, but fontina would be delicious too.

As a topping for bruschetta.

As an appetizer -- get phyllo dough cups or puff pastry cups (both widely available in freezer sections of your grocery store), and put some carmelized onions in them. Top either with grated manchego cheese, or a piece of brie and some jam, and bake until the cheese melts. These will be a huge hit at your party.

As a pasta sauce -- toss cooked pasta with a little olive oil and a big helping of onions and grated cheese. Or toss them with pierogies -- it's a perfect compliment to the potatoes.

As an addition to mashed potatoes - swirl these into your potatoes (or on top of a baked potato) to make them extra savory.