"Never-thought-I'd-like-it" Hubby surprised by delicious onion pie

"I never thought I’d be able to say I liked onion pie,” Hubby murmured approvingly as he scraped the casserole bowl for the last crisp of the dish we’d just polished off. For the past two nights we had been dining on Spring Onion Pie and marveling at how a concoction so simple could make such a dandy meal.

For several weeks the green tops from our ample onion crop have been standing in our garden as though they were bristles on a brush. From my office desk, looking out past our patio and into the garden expanse, I’ve been gazing on their little salutes as they soaked up the sun and got ready for the picking.

When the May 2012 issue of Southern Living featured Spring Onion Pie as a famous North Carolina chef’s pet recipe, I saw that it called for 10 thin spring onions and loved the idea of toting some straight from the garden and onto the chopping board in my kitchen. I can’t tell you how that fresh-straight-from the-garden-rows flavor lit up my world when I took my first bite of this pie, which was nothing more than a stirring-up of egg, milk flour, salt, baking powder, pepper, butter, and cheese.

The recipe called for cubed Gruyere cheese, which I didn’t have, but I did an Internet search to see what was the best kind of cheese to sub; it said to use Swiss. Hubby had a little tough time locating 10 garden onions that met the recipe’s “thin” qualification, as ours now are plumping up healthily, but once he did, they were the magic touch.

Yep, Hubby was able to say he liked onion pie. Adored it, in fact.

Spring Onion Pie

10 thin spring onions

4 large eggs, lightly beaten (or 1 cup egg substitute)

1 cup milk (I used skim)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt (I used salt substitute)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons butter

5 ounces Gruyere cheese, cubed (I used Swiss)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in oven. (I used a casserole dish instead.) Trim roots from onions; discard roots. Chop half of onions. Whisk together eggs and milk. Sift together flour and next 3 ingredients. Gradually add flour mixture to egg mixture. Whisk rapidly for 20 to 30 seconds or just until blended and smooth. (No lumps should appear.) Stir in chopped onions. Let stand 5 minutes. Carefully remove hot skillet from oven. Add butter; let stand until butter is melted. Place skillet over medium-high heat; pour batter into skillet. Arrange cheese and remaining whole onions over top of batter; cook 30 seconds to 1 minute or until edges begin to set. Transfer skillet to top oven rack; bake at 400 degrees for 22 to 25 minutes or until golden brown and puffy. (Outside edges should be crispy; inside texture should resemble a custard popover. Pie will deflate quickly. Serve immediately.) Makes 6 servings.

Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar: the Grand Pooh-Bah of Summer Foods

When I was making my list of summer "must-haves" before waning August days try to steal our joy, I neglected the Grand Pooh-Bah of Summer Foods: Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar.

Something about that tangy, always-makes-you-sneeze, vinegar and water combination that the cukes and onions soak in to give them their flavor bespeaks of a scorcher summer day.

Cucumbers and Onions (some people throw in a chopped-up tomato for a little color and taste alternative) couldn't be simpler to prepare, yet until now, when I'm my making list and checking it twice about what not to neglect before summer draws to a close, it hadn't occurred to me--we hadn't indulged in this one yet.

How could I overlook it, since it bears a place of honor in my new cookbook, Way Back in the Country Garden? It's a featured recipe as I describe my cousin Lynda's surprise wedding to her prince, George, and the memorable barbecue meal that followed.

Our cousins Bill and Jana brought Cucumbers and Onions fresh from their garden to serve at the lunch, which featured Mesquite Barbecue from the popular Mesquite eatery that our Uncle Herbert founded and where he became legendary for his Oyler Pit. (The recipe below can be attributed to Bill and Jana.)

It was a perfect complement for that barbecue, although last night at dinner it also went wonderfully well when Hubby and I dined on Cabbage Sloppy Joes (in a future blog I'll write more about that splendid recipe.) And yes, as if to pronounce Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar a hit, Hubby graced it with a big sneeze as the pepper and the eau de tangy brine tickled his nostrils.

Hubby is bummed that our cucumber supply, despite all the vast, leafy vines that covered a portion of the garden, wasn't voluminous this year. It's on his 2011 Garden Resolutions list for next summer--a better cucumber patch.

But the few we have remaining we plan to enjoy down to the last tiny morsel floating in the vinegar-and-water sea. Summer, last just a little longer so we can enjoy all your good foods.

Cucumbers and Vinegar in Oil

2-3 medium cucumbers

1 medium onion

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon salt(we use salt substitute)

pepper to taste (the more you can stand, the better)

Peel cucumbers and slice horizontally. Slice onions crosswise. Put cucumbers and onions in a bowl. Pour vinegar and water over them. Stir to mix. Chill several hours before you serve. Serves 6-8.

Don't let the title fool you; "mid-summer" salad recipe with ingredients fresh from the garden is perfect any time

The recipe's name was "Mid-Summer Salad", but who says it can't make a good meal in early summer as well?

As I prepared this recipe for a June evening meal, I couldn't help but wish I were doing so on a mid-summer date a few weeks hence. That would mean that our expected baby grandson would be very near his arrival time. Wa-hoo! We can hardly wait! Now that will be a cause for celebration! But back to "Mid-Summer Salad."

"Mid-Summer" in the recipe name perhaps refers to the fact that some of the ingredients, such as the tomatoes and cucumber, would be reaching their peak in the garden in mid-summer and hence would be available for salad-making about that time.

Regardless of the trivia about the name, Mid-Summer Salad was memorable and delicious. (Thanks to my booklet, Celebrating a Healthy Harvest, from the Chickasaw Nutrition Services, which contained the recipe.) In preparing it I learned two things:

* Green onions, fresh from our garden (they're really just the tops of regular onions), add an incredible zest to a salad mixture. In this recipe they're part of the dressing. They really make this salad sing. The one-tablespoon mustard added to the dressing adds to the flavor as well.

* Keep the cut-up avocado in a salad from turning brown by dumping the seed right into the salad mixture. The presence of the seed keeps the avocado green. (I learned this on Sunday from Ishmael's mom, who attended--and brought homemade Guacamole for--our backyard fiesta. I wrote about this in my Monday blog about my "new-beginnings" Peach Cobbler. As I scooped out my Guacamole helping onto my plate, a medium-sized seed plopped right onto the plate with it. Margarita told me she puts seeds in all her guacamole. Indeed it was the brightest, freshest green color imaginable.) Of course many people sprinkle a cut avocado with lemon or white vinegar to prevent browning.

Many people also know the tip that to ripen an avocado, place the fruit in a brown paper bag in a cool place for two to five days. Daily check for ripeness. Refrigerate ripe avocados; use within three days.

I added the avocado seed to my mixture for my Mid-Summer Salad. Truly the avocado stayed bright green and never turned brown even hours after the salad had been in the refrigerator. Thanks, Margarita, for the suggestion!

Because of the addition of the diced chicken breast, Mid-Summer Salad--served with some warmed tortillas on the side (also left over from Sunday's fiesta)--made an ideal entree for a light summer meal. Here's to Mid- (or in the case of our salad, Early) Summer!

Mid-Summer Salad

8 cups mixed greens (we used spinach)

2 eggs, hard-boiled, chopped

1/2 pound cooked boneless chicken breast, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

1 cucumber, sliced

1 avocado, diced

Dressing:

2 tablespoons vinegar

2 tablespoons diced green onions

1 tablespoon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons cooking oil

Mix dressing ingredients in a small container. In a large salad bowl mix and toss greens, eggs, chicken breast, tomatoes, cucumber, and avocado. Add dressing and toss thoroughly. Chill and serve. Makes 4 servings.