by merrill
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1/4 cup pine nuts Ask a question about this ingredient
12 ounces small cipollini onions or one 10-ounce bag of frozen pearl onions, thawed Ask a question about this ingredient
3 tablespoons olive oil Ask a question about this ingredient
1/3 cup medium sherry Ask a question about this ingredient
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar Ask a question about this ingredient
2 tablespoons sugar Ask a question about this ingredient
Using a small frying pan, lightly toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes, shaking the pan back and forth to keep them from scorching. Set aside.
Ask a question about this stepPeel the onions -- either by blanching them first in boiling, salted water for about 30 seconds and then using a sharp paring knife to strip away the skins, or by simply going at the raw onions with the aforementioned paring knife. (Personally, I find blanching a waste of time here and prefer to just have at it.)
Ask a question about this stepPut the olive oil in large frying pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook gently (without browning) for about 5 minutes. Add the sherry and cook until mostly reduced. Add 3/4 cup water, vinegar, sugar, raisins, pine nuts and a pinch of salt. Stir well. Simmer the mixture over the lowest heat possible for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so. You may need to add more water from time to time if the mixture gets too thick and gooey or starts to stick to the bottom of the pan. It is finished when everything has caramelized well, and the flavors have blended together (you can take it as far as you’d like—I for one prefer a deep amber color).
Ask a question about this stepCool and serve at room temperature. Can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Ask a question about this stepOMG, this is spectacular. I love it. Many thanks for sharing, Merrill. We'll definitely be adding this "goo" to our holiday table staples!
i am salivating over this- it's cooking on my stove now and is pretty close to done. ooh!
Dear god, I haven't started drinking yet and apparently I can neither spell or post correctly!
Ha! You can go ahead and add the pine nuts today. This really gets better after a few days.
I'm making this on Sunday before thanksgiving and was wondering if I should wait until Thursday. To add the pine nuts, or just go rheas and do so so today.
I'm making this on Sunday before thanksgiving and was wondering if I should wait until Thursday. To add the pine nuts, or just go rheas and do so so today.
Can't wait to try this, looks wonderful!
Should this take longer with frozen pearl onions? It smells terrific but it's no where close to the goo stage. I just added a glug of fresh apple cider to see if the extra liquid and sugar might wrap it up.
This is simmering on my stove as I prep for Thanksgiving next week - an instant winner! Thanks for a terrific addition to our dinner. I can so see this with the beef tenderloin at Christmas as well. Added a little fresh thyme and grated a knob of ginger as well, btw.
Are the raisins part of the original recipe? I'm not crazy about them in general (for Xmas, made cranberry chutney with raisins, rum and ginger, then went: oh, now I remember, not a big raisin fan...). I'd love to try something like this though.
Yes, the raisins were always there and are needed for both the sweetness and the texture. As a non-raisin-lover, maybe you could try dried cranberries...I suspect you might have to add more sugar. Would love to know!
Kari is the manager of Whisk, a kitchenware store in Brooklyn.
Although I was momentarily indecisive about serving this without having previously made it, it was delicious with the ham and the turkey and the leftovers were equally good on crackers as an appetizer. It was an easy easy recipe, leftovers keep well, always have the ingredients on hand. It's definitely going in the "favorites" rotation.