Pickled Red Onions #2

Pickled Red Onions #2

(about 1 cup)

Ingredients:

½ cup Water

¼ cup Apple Cider Vinegar

2 tsp. Brown Sugar

1 tsp. Whole Black Pepper Corns

¾ tsp. Kosher Salt

½ tsp. Mustard Seed

1 Star Anise

1 clove Fresh Garlic

1 cup (packed) Red Onion, thinly sliced

1 frond Fresh Dill

Directions:

In a small pan, combine water, vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, salt, mustard seed, star anise and garlic.  Bring mixture to a simmer making sure all sugar and salt have dissolved.  Place sliced onion and dill in a pint canning jar and pour vinegar mixture over them.  Be sure all onion is submerged in the liquid.  Cool and then cover and refrigerate up to 2 weeks.  Chill at least 4 hours before serving.

Note:               These are great on burgers, dogs and brats.  But try them on all your sandwiches as an added depth of flavor.

Ideas for Future Efforts

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Pickled Red Onions #1

Pickled Red Onions #1

(about 1½ cups)

Ingredients:

½ cup plus 1 tbsp. Red Wine Vinegar

½ cup plus 1 tbsp. Water

1½ tsp. Kosher Salt

2¼ tsp. Sugar

1 small Red Onion (or half a large

Directions:

In a small pan, combine vinegar, water, salt and sugar.  Bring to a boil whisking to help dissolve sugar.  Remove from heat.  Meanwhile, clean and cut the onion in half lengthwise.  Slice onion into very thin slivers.  Place sliced onion in a pint canning jar or another heatproof container.  Now pour the vinegar mixture into the jar.  Press onion slices down to completely submerge.  Let cool and then cover and chill for 24 hours.  Strain the liquid off and store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Note:               These are great on burgers, dogs and brats.  But try them on all your sandwiches as an added depth of flavor.

Ideas for Future Efforts

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Another Burger or Hot Dog Topping

It’s summer time and grilling is going on all over.  Burgers and hot dogs are probably the top meats being grilled in the backyard or campsite.

I’m sure that ketchup and mustard are the top two toppings as well.  I know many people will be using cheese, pickles, lettuce and tomatoes, which are also standard toppings for these two sandwiches.

But there are a lot of other toppings being used too.  Some you are familiar with and some maybe not.  Bacon, guacamole, bbq sauce and sliced or diced onion are a few more.

A couple of weeks ago, I gave you some recipes for jams to put on burgers and dogs.  There are flavored mayonnaise recipes and spreads you could try.

Currently, a hot topping is “Pickled Red Onions” across the nation.  So this week, I give you two different ones to give a shot.

I’m just calling them “Pickled Red Onions #1” and “Pickled Red Onions #2” for simplicity.  The #1 will be on Wednesday and it will be followed up by #2 on Thursday.

There are many more versions of pickled red onions out there, but I wanted to limit it to two.  If you try these and you like them but think there might be something better still out there.  Hit the internet and search for one you think might excite you more.

Pickled red onions are not only good on these two items but they help take many other sandwiches to another level.  So don’t limit yourself when giving them a try.

Enjoy and “Happy Cooking” until next week and please share the link.  Thanks.

Gluten-Free Pie Crust 2 (GF)

Gluten-Free Pie Crust 2 (GF)

(1 double crusted pie)

Ingredients:

1 cup GF Flour (cup4cup)

2/3 cup Tapioca Flour

½ cup Sweet Rice Flour

1 tsp. Xanthan Gum

1 tsp. Guar Gum

½ tsp. Salt

¼ tsp. Baking Soda

3 tbsp. Sugar, divided

½ cup Shortening

½ cup Milk

1 tsp. Cider Vinegar

Directions:

In a food processor, place dry ingredients, 2 tbsp. sugar and shortening and mix well.  Add milk and vinegar and blend until the dough forms a ball.  If it doesn’t form a ball, use a spatula to break up the dough and process again.  Scrape sides if needed.  Remove dough and knead on a floured surface until smooth.  Flatten into a i-inch thick disk and wrap in plastic wrap and chill 1 hour.  Remove dough from refrigerator, cut in half and massage with hands until warm and pliable.  This makes it easier to handle.  Roll the dough to a 10-inch circle between two pieces of heavy-duty plastic wrap that have been dusted with white rice flour.  Use a damp paper towel between countertop and plastic wrap to anchor the plastic.  Keep remaining half tightly wrapped to avoid drying out.  Move rolling pin from center of dough out to the edge, moving it around in a circle in a clockwise fashion to assure uniform thickness.  Remove top plastic and invert crust, centering it in a 9-inch nonstick pie pan (not a black one).  Remove remaining plastic and press crust in place.  Flute edges as desired cutting away excess dough.  Fill with favorite pie filling or blind bake for your desired need.  If making a double crust pie, repeat process with remaining dough and top pie.  Seal dough in your usual way and bake according to your recipe.

Note:               You can use the dough scraps leftover for making some small fruit tarts or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and then in foil or a freezer bag for later use.

Ideas for Future Efforts

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Gluten-Free Pie Crust 1 (GF)

Gluten-Free Pie Crust 1 (GF)

(6 dough balls)

Ingredients:

2 cups (1 lb.) Salted Butter, room temperature

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Cream Cheese, room temp

6 cups GF Flour (cup4cup)

Directions:

Place butter and cheese in a food processor and cream together.  Add flour and pulse processor until dough comes together.  Remove from processor and kneed on a floured surface a little.  Divide into 6 equal dough balls and use what you need to make your pie or pies.  Wrap each remaining ball tightly in plastic wrap and freeze until needed.

Note:               Use a food processor instead of a pastry blender to get the result of a great GF pie crust.

Note:               Crust works great for quiche as well as pies.

Ideas for Future Efforts

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Gluten-Free Pie Crusts

When it comes to Gluten-Free baking it can be difficult to get the results you desire.  This week I have two “Pie Crust” recipes for you to try.

The first is much easier but both will give you a great base for your favorite pie, quiche or whatever you need a crust for in your food preparation.

Give them both a try and see which one you like best.

But a key to both is the use of a “Food Processor” to combine the dough.  It seems that when making GF dough, it helps create a better end result.  You might find that it helps on other baking that you do for a gluten-free product too.

To pass along another tidbit, I like “Cup4Cup” gluten-free flour for my baking too.  If you have not tried it, it’s worth it the next time you buy GF flour.

Until next week, “Happy Cooking” and please spread the link for this food blog.  Thanks.

Pineapple Salsa

Pineapple Salsa

(about 3 cups)

Ingredients:

2 cups Fresh Pineapple, medium dice

½ cup Red Onion, diced

1 medium Jalapeno, seeded and diced

3 cloves Fresh Garlic, minced

1 bunch Fresh Cilantro Leaves, chopped

5 tbsp. Fresh Lime Juice

1 tsp. Salt

½ tsp. Black Pepper

Directions:

In a medium bowl, toss all ingredient until well combined.  Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.  Toss just before serving and offer with your favorite tortilla chips.

Note:               If you like mango, try this recipe substituting it for the pineapple.

Ideas for Future Efforts

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