Stuffed Onion Leaves Food

STUFFED ONIONS

Steps:

• Trim the very ends of the onions. Make an incision in each, from top to root, then another 0.5cm along, so you can cut out and discard a thin wedge (like you're discarding a segment of orange). Bring a pan of water to the boil and add the onions. Boil for 10 mins, remove from the water and let cool. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• When the onions are cool enough to handle, carefully peel and set aside their outer layers - you want about 12-16 large layers in total, which will become the outer casing for the lamb filling. You can use the smaller, leftover layers in the middle for another recipe.
• Mix all the stuffing ingredients in a bowl and season well. Shape into 12-16 oval meatballs. Put each one on an onion layer and roll it up to create what looks like a small, peeled onion.
• Pour half the olive oil into a large, shallow casserole dish or roasting tin, then arrange all the stuffed onions on top in a tight, single layer. Drizzle over the remaining oil and bake for 45 mins. Brush with the molasses and bake for another 15-20 mins until the casings are really soft and dark golden brown. Serve with the root vegetable rice and the herby yogurt dressing on the side.

STUFFED ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a Dutch oven, bring a small amount of water to a boil. Peel onions; using a slotted spoon, place onions in boiling water. Cook for 4-6 minutes more until softened; remove and let stand until cool enough to handle. Cut a 1/4-in. slice off the top of each onion. Remove center, leaving a 1/2-in shell. Chop centers and tops of onions; set aside. In a skillet, cook bacon until crisp; remove to paper towel to drain. In the drippings, saute chopped onion until tender. Stir in bread crumbs and parsley. Add the butter and mushrooms; cook until mushrooms are tender. Add bacon, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stuff onion shells; place in an ungreased shallow 1-qt. baking dish. Pour broth around onions. Bake, uncovered, until tender, 45 minutes, basting frequently during the first 15 minutes. If desired, sprinkle with parsley.

STUFFED VINE LEAVES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Wash the vine leaves thoroughly, then put in a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Boil for 15 mins, then drain.
• Put the oil in a medium, non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 6-7 mins until translucent. Increase the heat and add the beef, frying for about 5 mins or until browned. Add the stock, tomatoes, purée and rice. Stir together, then add the cinnamon, mint, lemon juice and 1 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper. Check the seasoning, stir to combine, then remove from the heat.
• To stuff the vine leaves, lay a leaf on a chopping board, shiny-side down. Cut off and discard any stems. At the point where the stem was, add 1 heaped tsp of the mixture. Fold the bottom of the leaf up and over the filling, then fold the sides inwards and the top down, and continue to roll up. Repeat with the remaining filling and leaves.
• Line the base of a deep, ovenproof dish with any remaining vine leaves, then tightly pack the stuffed leaves into the dish. Pour over 140ml water and cover with foil. Cook for 1 hr, until the rice is cooked. You can also freeze the filled vine leaves. Cook these from frozen for 90 mins until piping hot and the rice is thoroughly cooked.

SAUSAGE STUFFED ONION

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with foil.
• Peel the onions and cut them in half along the equator. Cut the bottoms slightly so that the onions can sit cut-side up steadily. Use a spoon or melon baller to scoop the centers out of the onions, leaving about 1/4-inch (or 1 layer of onion) as the shell and reserving the scooped flesh. (The onions should look like little bowls.) Place the hollowed-out onions in the baking dish. Drizzle the olive oil over them and sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Roast the onions until they are soft and brown on the tops, about 30 minutes. Let rest until cool enough to handle. (Leave the oven on.)
• Meanwhile, roughly chop the reserved onion flesh. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to brown, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle in 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper, or more if desired. Reduce the heat to medium and let the onions cook until they are very soft and brown, another 10 to 15 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup wine into the skillet and scrape up any brown bits. Let the wine cook out, then transfer the onions to a large bowl to cool slightly.
• Add and combine the sausage with the caramelized onions. Mix in the panko, thyme, garlic, half the Parmesan, half the parsley and salt and pepper to taste.
• Use a 1/2-cup ice cream scoop or measuring cup to add a heaping half cup of the sausage mixture to each roasted onion. They should be mounded; press everything in to keep it together. Pour the stock and remaining 1/2 cup wine into the bottom of the baking dish. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the onions from the oven, remove the foil, sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on the tops of the onions, then bake until the cheese is melted and browning and the sausage is browned, another 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, then sprinkle with the remaining parsley and serve warm.

STUFFED ONION LEAVES

Steps:

• Place whole unpeeled onions (bigger the better!) in a pot, cover with water. Bring water to boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cover and simmer the onions for 20 minutes. Remove, drain and cool the onions so you can handle them.
• Mix together the lamb or beef, add cinnamon, allspice, salt, pepper and rice. Mix well, then add tomatoes, gently mix again, being careful not squeeze juice out of the tomatoes.
• Cut the top and bottom from the cooked, UNPEELED onions. Slice into the onions by making a cup down the side of the onion that goes to the center of the onion. Remove the outer skin and then, VERY CAREFULLY, remove outer leaves.
• Place a big of filling into each onion leaf and roll, like a sausage.
• Add to hot, large frying pan coated with olive oil and brown. Add some beef stock and simmer 40 minutes covered.

BAKED STUFFED ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Trim the ends of the onions, leaving the skins on, and cut them in half horizontally. Put the onions, cut-side up, in a baking dish just large enough to hold them in a single layer. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the oil; scatter the thyme sprigs over the top and season with salt and pepper. Add 2 cups of water, cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour. Remove the foil and bake, basting with the pan juices until the edges of the onions are browned, about 45 minutes to 1 hour more. (Add more water if pan is running dry.) Remove from the oven and cool.
• Smash the garlic clove with the side of a cook's knife. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat, add the garlic and stir until golden, about 3 minutes. Remove the garlic and discard. Working in batches, add the spinach, stirring to wilt before each addition. When all the spinach has been added, raise the heat to high, season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Cover and cook until fully wilted, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain the spinach in a colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze as much liquid from the spinach as possible and coarsely chop.
• Lower the oven heat to 350 degrees F.
• Scoop out the center of each onion, leaving at least half an inch of the outer rings, to make onion "bowls". Coarsely chop half of the onion centers, and reserve the remaining for another use. In a mixing bowl combine the chopped onion, spinach, lemon zest, eggs, cayenne, breadcrumbs, chopped thyme, and feta cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Divide the mixture evenly among the scooped-out onions. Drizzle the tops with the remaining olive oil and bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

FETA STUFFED ROASTY ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5/fan 170C. Peel the onions leaving them whole, removing the first layer of onion as you peel. Cut them in half across the middle and remove several layers from the centre of each using a teaspoon. Fill any holes with a small slice of onion taken from the centre layers. Arrange onion halves, cut side up in a small ovenproof dish. Pour a splash of water into the dish and brush the onions with some of the oil. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 45-50 minutes until they are tender.
• Meanwhile, finely chop the inner layers. Heat the remaining oil in a medium sized saucepan and fry the chopped onion, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes until soft and beginning to brown, leave to cool.
• Mix the cooled chopped onions in a bowl with half the feta, the breadcrumbs, chilli, sun-dried tomatoes, chopped thyme and parsley,walnuts, beaten egg and some salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir well until everything's combined.
• Increase the oven to 200C/gas 6/fan 180C. Divide the feta stuffing between the onions, then scatter over the remaining cheese and sprinkle over a few thyme sprigs. Drizzle over a little oil from the tomato jar and cook for 25 minutes until the stuffing is bubbling and the feta is golden brown.

MY OWN FAMOUS STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, saute the rice, onion, dill, and mint for about 5 minutes, or until onion is soft. Pour in 1 quart of broth, reduce heat to low and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until rice is almost cooked. Stir in 1/2 of lemon juice and remove from heat.
• Take one leaf, shiny side down, and place 1 teaspoon of the rice mixture at the bottom (stem) end of the leaf. Fold both sides of the leaf towards the center, roll up from the broad bottom to the top, and place into a 4-quart pot. Repeat with all leaves, leaving no gaps as leaves are placed in pot (to prevent from opening while cooking). Sprinkle with remaining lemon juice and with olive oil.
• Pour chicken broth over all to cover grape leaves. Cover pot and simmer for about 1 hour (do not boil, because this will make the stuffing burst out of the leaves). Remove from heat, remove cover and let cool for 1/2 hour. Transfer to serving dish and serve.