Make local onions a suppertime star

I think onions are often underappreciated. You might cook with them every day but they’re never the star of the meal. Onions add body, texture and flavour but are often invisible in a dish. That is, unless you caramelize your onions. Then they can become a versatile suppertime star in pizza and pasta dishes (see recipes below).

Look for local onions in the grocery store all year long. Bags of yellow cooking onions grown in Nova Scotia are easy to find in the produce section. Check the tags to be sure.

To caramelize onions, slice them thinly and sauté in oil over medium heat for 20 to 30 minutes. Stir often.

Thin crust pizza with caramelized onions

Caramelize 3-4 onions, spread on prepared pizza dough. Top with a handful of chopped spinach, a few chopped sundried tomatoes and a generous sprinkling of feta or old cheddar. Bake as usual.  (Soften the tomatoes in hot water if they’re dried).

Pasta with caramelized onions

Caramelize 3-4 onions.  When they’re ready, stir in 2 cups chopped spinach or Swiss chard, toss around a bit, cover and remove from heat.

Cook one pound of pasta according to package directions and drain, leaving it a bit wet. Toss pasta with caramelized onion mixture, ½ cup of feta and ¼ cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts. Add a generous squeeze of lemon (about half a lemon) and season with salt & pepper. Serve with parmesan. Lemon zest grated over is a nice addition.