(NAPSA)—Cold weather meals can makeyou feel cozy, comforted, and happy. An easy way to get that satisfaction is with caramelized onions. Sweet, slow- cooked onions are a great way to add depth of flavor to dishes you crave. First, you need to start with the best onion for the job. Many say that’s OSO Sweets. Luckily, the variety is in season—January through March. OSOsalso have a unique cellular structure that allows them to be cooked for a long time without getting mushy or losing their shape. OSO are not only healthy like other onions—rich in the antioxidant, quercetin and compounds that help prevent heart disease— they’re the mildest onion out there, so they can please even the most finicky eaters. Once you’ve picked the best onion, cooking them up can be ohso-easy. To make caramelized onions: Melt 2 ths. butter in a medium-large skillet over mediumlow heat. Add two large thinly sliced sweet onions and cook,stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and golden, about 45 minutes. Two large onions will cook down to about one cup of caramelized onions, so cook up an extra large batch. They will stay fresh in the fridge for up to two weeks. Then, use them the way chefs do, adding a quick hit of richness to so many dishes. The newest twist is to make your caramelized onion even more special—by adding flavors. Add fresh minced ginger or curry pow- der or 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice to the skillet along with the onions or add 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped sage or mint or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves. Either way, the finished product will be super-special, sweet slow-cooked onions that you can use all year long as a condiment—on sandwiches, to dress up a simple sauteed chicken breast or chop, on toasted bread rounds as an hors d’oeuvre or in an omelette for a special brunch—or as the flavorful base of a dish such as braised brisket, rich vegetable soup or in this Easy Braised Chicken with Sweet Onion Gravy. Easy Braised Chicken With Sweet Onion Gravy 1 (8 4-pound) chicken, cut into 10 pieces 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 2 cups caramelized onions (with any flavoring), made according to directions above 1 cup dry white wine, or % cup red wine vinegar 1% cups chicken broth (or 2 cups, if using vinegar instead of wine) Heat oven to 350. Sprinkle chicken parts with salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken in two batches, and cook until brown onall sides, about 12 minutes per batch. Spread caramelized onions in the bottom of a 4-quart shallow baking dish. Nestle the chicken pieces in the onions. Pour excess oil from the skillet. Add wine (or vine- gar) and boil until reduced by half. Add broth and return to boil. Pour the broth mixture over the chicken and place the dish in the oven. Bake until chicken is tender and cooked through, about 35 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. For more tasty recipes, visit sweetonionsource.com.
