A Day of Caramel (and Caramelizing!)

Let it be known, I have always called it car-mel. I'm not sure where this "a" in the middle came from, but the modestly classless sunburnt neck in me is protesting. BUT, aside from my down-home-with-a-slight-slurring-twang...I adore this stuff.

We've just had the Apple Festival here, which is sort of ..like the fair. Except...there's more food, no rides, and the parking is even more atrocious. On the good side, there were quite a few little tents sprung up with home-made organic BBQ sauce and various sauces. And holy Lord Almighty, there were caramel apples. I took two home with me yesterday; both were devoured before 6 PM today.

This evening has been balmy and beautiful, and we feasted at our little sushi joint up the road. And then, after making some green tea and reading ..I made some French Onion Soup. This isn't your canon-style soup, but the basic elements are there.  We've really been avoiding the beef lately, so I needed to experiment to get around the beef-stock problem.  (This is the caramelizing part).

First:

See that brown sugar! It's big, and sweet, and moist.

Here's what I used. You'll see some brands here, I'm not necessarily advertising. This is what's working for me, and easy enough to get your hands on. 

This is my staple, since it has a rich enough flavor to work with the onion. I used about a whole box, maybe a little more, plus a good glug of wine. 

That's what was on my fingers..........

Since rosemary is best fresh, I sizzled it in the pot with the garlic, before I added the stock.

 I got pretty excited with the rosemary, and used about two stems' worth, chopped finely and tossed in first with two small cloves of garlic. Normally, I'd include some bay, but I though it might be overwhelming with everything else going on here.

Modestly above average wine on it's own, but very forgiving and balanced. Drank some of it, threw some in the stock. Smelled up the whole house lovely!

Now whilst that is going, choppy choppy:

Add another half of one, because you want some extra to pick out of the pan.

I just sliced up both buggers, with the onion halved first. Then I took the slender cuts and made them into thirds. Nothing scientific about it, just don't cut your hands off. If you need knife skills, Gluten Free Girl and the Chef will get you rolling. 

I did a mixture of olive oil and butter in the pan. On medium heat, I softened up the onions for a few minutes and then added the brown sugar:

It takes them a good while to be soft and sweet, and they should be browning before you take them off the heat. 

I know I'm not talking much about proportions, but I think one shouldn't be married to the measuring cup. Even flour will absorb more or less water depending on so many factors...even in the perilous world of baking, which is closest to chemistry! Before I stop preaching, here's my point---

You have to know what you want your food to taste and look like. We've all had French Onion before, so the magic is in which lovely ingredients you decide on, and how they balance. Be patient and attentive, get a second opinion if you need it. 

Here's what it looked like:

Of course, tomorrow I'll put on the crouton + cheese and throw those munchkins in the oven. But that's the easy part. 

AH! and here also, since I was hungry...the long aggrandized tomato sandwich! This time with mozza, and on the rosemary-sea salt bagel (I'm sure you can tell, I've been on that train lately).

Please don't mind the mess. Or the lumpy bagel...

I wound up eating it in pieces, so that I could get the most out of both ends of the bagel. By the time I was done with it, it was more lasagna than sandwich. But I was really in food stupor by that point!

A Rice Project

I've been thinking about rice lately.  Specifically, right now, I'm thinking about organic rice in bulk.

With all my new-found time, there is a ..stricter grocery budget. Being the borderline foodie personality that I am (I mean borderline nuts, in case you hadn't already guessed), I need certain things. I need to cook; I need freezer burritos that I'm not going to feel guilty about, plenty of mushrooms, and even more cheese.

So I'm sure you've seen the question before: How many things can you do with rice? This may or may not include beans. Of course you have risotto, and paella, and dirty rice, and stir fry on top of the fried kind. Honestly, I'm only moderately interested in those things.  Be warned: There will be experiments. You may even be subjected to pictures of questionable outcomes.

Firstly, I am going to bulk the freezer burritos. Who doesn't enjoy a cheesy hot mess, made in 1.5 minutes? It seems a little bottom of the barrel, but it beats the pants off most freezer food. And, if I can (sort of) replicate the organic variety we're all so fond of, I could take burrito cost sub $1.50, which would be ideal.  The Big Cat of the house (as I call him, you'll see why) is disturbed by this burrito project. He's trying to warn me that it might not come out well, but I'm really too into the idea to stop now.

My other obsession has been The Tomato Sandwich.  (I'll have to come up with pictures soon--it's just been eluding the camera due to voracious consumption by yours truly.) Why don't you take my hand, as we journey into the land of fantasy here for a bit?

Imagine: You have fresh rosemary and sea salt bread, sliced generously. You also have some Greek yogurt which you've lightly lined your slices with, soaking into the bread slightly. Some French feta is crumbled over it, and they're warmed together. Finally you thickly slice a perfectly ripe plum tomato, graze it with sea salt and course black pepper.

Altogether, this is perfect for eating at 2:30 AM. Then slide cozily to sleep with a kitten who is very curious about that sandwich, and very determined to sleep exactly where you'll roll onto him.

Looking forward...

I don't know if this has happened to anyone else...but for me, right now, food is about the future. Since I am currently in the half-way house of kitchens, there's been a lot of thinking and planning. I've been thinking about pruning roses, what we'll plant in the garden next year, where my herb bushes will be grown. Most importantly, I've been wondering:

 When WILL I get to start those little plant children??


In the present, there have been simple things.  For our going away party, some work-friends had us over for dinner. I wanted to bring something, since my friend Lee and I were conspiring to get more veggies into this meal-outing. I had this zucchini, some basil, some miscellaneous hard cheeses, and an oven. After I started the zucchini and sautéed it with a few other things...It just came together.

I would have taken some pictures, but this happened:

Kitten running interference.

It was a moment where you're standing in the kitchen, smelling something you know is going to be tasty. And you know that it wasn't all you. There's the organic zucchini, that a family grew. There is the basil that released it's lovely juices into the pesto; and the cheeses that you couldn't leave the store without.  And with a little luck, and divine providence...it happens.

There are also fingerling potatoes, sugar snap peas, and lovely sockeye salmon:

Yes, I know about the blue plate. I'm working on it.

And I'll leave you with that.