Onions – Simple Comfort Food – Recipes that are simple and delicious.

Homemade V8 Juice

September 6, 2016 Dax Phillips 1 Comment

I don’t know about you, but our vegetable garden is officially in full bloom. We are picking tomatoes, like big bowls of them, every day, along with cucumbers, beans, peppers, chilies, and broccoli, and I love every minute of it. It’s something I like doing after work, and at the end of the week I look at all of the bowls of tomatoes, peppers, and chilies, and think of things to make with them. So on a recent trip to our local farmer’s market, and while as was chatting it up with a couple of the local farmers, a lady approached them and asked to buy a huge basket of tomatoes. Of course I was going to ask this lady what she was going to do with all of those tomatoes, and her response was ‘I batch out large quantities of spicy v8 juice for bloody mary’s for football season’. As one of the farmer’s chimed in regards to the same process, I was intrigued to say the least.

So as I went back home, I decided to give my take on a v8 style juice, and man oh man was it ever good, and fresh to boot.

Homemade V8 Juice Recipe

This recipe, as it may not be the prettiest of juices, is not only easy to make, put it has just the right amount of spice (in my opinion) and you know that you put all of that fresh produce into it.

Let’s get started.

1 lb of tomatoes (I used a variety from my garden)
1 whole green bell pepper, diced
1/2 whole red onion, quartered
1 serrano chili, chopped (remove seeds if you do not want it too spicy)
1/2 bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 tbsp worchestershire sauce
generous pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
2 cups of water, divided

To a medium sized saucepan, add 1 cup of water and all remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer, and cook for about 30 minutes, covered.

Remove the cover, add in the remaining cup of water, give a good stir, then remove from the heat and let it cool for about 15 minutes.

Add the mixture to a blender, and blend until you think everything is nicely pureed.

Next you will need to strain the mixture. I use a chinois but if you do not have that then try and use a fine-mesh sieve, and place in a large mason jar. Discard or compost the remaining solids.

Chill the juice in the refrigerator, and when you are ready to serve, pour over some ice or a virgin bloody mary, or add a bit of vodka if you are making a cocktail.

The result is really, really good. I typically have to add stuff to my v8 drink to make it a bit spicy, but this combination was perfect. So if you are looking to use up some of those vegetables from your garden, or better yet supporting your local farmers, then give this one a shot. It’s well worth it. Hope you enjoy!

Homemade V8 Juice

Author: Dax Phillips

Recipe type: Juice

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 45 mins

Total time: 50 mins

Serves: 5 cups

Ingredients

1 lb of tomatoes (I used a variety from my garden)
1 whole green bell pepper, diced
½ whole red onion, quartered
1 serrano chili, chopped (remove seeds if you do not want it too spicy)
½ bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1 tbsp worchestershire sauce
generous pinch of salt
¼ tsp cracked black pepper
2 cups of water, divided

Instructions

To a medium sized saucepan, add 1 cup of water and all remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer, and cook for about 30 minutes, covered.
Remove the cover, add in the remaining cup of water, give a good stir, then remove from the heat and let it cool for about 15 minutes.
Add the mixture to a blender, and blend until you think everything is nicely pureed.
Next you will need to strain the mixture. I use a chinois but if you do not have that then try and use a fine-mesh sieve, and place in a large mason jar. Discard or compost the remaining solids.
Chill the juice in the refrigerator, and when you are ready to serve, pour over some ice or a virgin bloody mary, or add a bit of vodka if you are making a cocktail.
The result is really, really good. I typically have to add stuff to my v8 drink to make it a bit spicy, but this combination was perfect.

Homemade French Onion Dip

August 10, 2016 Dax Phillips Leave a comment

As I have noted in the past, my daughter loves, just loves Grandma’s dip. I think she actually gets excited when we go to Grandma’s house because she knows that the majority of the time Grandma is going to the ‘the dip’ and chips out for snacking. The dip is the French onion dip you buy at the store, and one, for whatever reason, that I never buy. Most likely because no one else would eat it. So not too long ago I decided it was time for me to make a batch of my take on a French onion dip, and one that steers away from the classic minced onion recipe. I don’t even recall when I last used minced onion anyway.

This French onion dip uses my onion jam recipe which elevates it to a whole other level.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 very large onion, thinly sliced
generous pinch of salt
2 cloves of garlic, grated on a rasp or microplane
1 lime, zested
1/2 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 lime, juiced
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
8 oz container of sour cream
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
Potato Chips

Start as you normally would when caramelizing onions. Heat a large skillet on medium-low heat, add the butter, and add in your onions. Shower the onions with a generous pinch of salt, then let the games begin. The goal is to cook these nice and slow, until they are a nice golden color.

This process can take about 40 minutes, or longer, but be patient and stir throughout the process.

Once you achieve a golden color, then it is time to add in your garlic and allowing that to cook a minute or two, stirring the garlic into the onions.

After a minute or two, add in the cracked black pepper, fish sauce, lime zest, and lime juice. Give the mixture a good stir, raise the heat just a bit, and cook another minute or two.

Remove the onions from the heat, place them in a bowl, and let them come to room temperature.

Once your onions have cooled, take about a cup of them and add them to a small mixing bowl. Add in the garlic powder, salt, and sour cream. Give this a good mix, and get ready to serve them up.

Place the dip into a serving bowl, alongside your favorite potato chips and dig in.

Not I’m not sure if my daughter will start calling this ‘Dad’s Dip’, but what I do know is that she spooned out two small bowls of it and went to town. I think I won on that front.

If you are looking not only for a great onion jam recipe, but one that can be folded into some basic ingredients and made into a great dip, then give this one a shot. Hope you enjoy!

Homemade French Onion Dip

Author: Dax Phillips

Recipe type: Appetizer

Ingredients

2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 very large onion, thinly sliced
generous pinch of salt
2 cloves of garlic, grated on a rasp or microplane
1 lime, zested
½ tbsp fish sauce
½ lime, juiced
¼ tsp cracked black pepper
8 oz container of sour cream
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
Potato Chips

Instructions

Start as you normally would when caramelizing onions. Heat a large skillet on medium-low heat, add the butter, and add in your onions. Shower the onions with a generous pinch of salt, then let the games begin. The goal is to cook these nice and slow, until they are a nice golden color.
This process can take about 40 minutes, or longer, but be patient and stir throughout the process.
Once you achieve a golden color, then it is time to add in your garlic and allowing that to cook a minute or two, stirring the garlic into the onions.
After a minute or two, add in the cracked black pepper, fish sauce, lime zest, and lime juice. Give the mixture a good stir, raise the heat just a bit, and cook another minute or two.
Remove the onions from the heat, place them in a bowl, and let them come to room temperature.
Once your onions have cooled, take about a cup of them and add them to a small mixing bowl. Add in the garlic powder, salt, and sour cream. Give this a good mix, and get ready to serve them up.
Place the dip into a serving bowl, alongside your favorite potato chips and dig in.

Buttermilk Fried Spring Onions

April 14, 2016 Dax Phillips 1 Comment

Every time I visit my local Mexican grocery store, I tend to shop around after devouring some tacos. I get the staples which typically include limes, cilantro, garlic, chilies, avocados, and tortillas. I my often look at the other great produce and always look at the great large spring onions. These are not your typical green onions that you find in most markets. These are the ones where the bulb is about 5 times larger than a standard green onion. They are known as spring onions, and as they look much like a scallion, they have just a bit more of a bite. This is when I decided to pick up a bunch and head home.

At first I was going to lube them up with some olive oil and salt, and toss them on the grill, but I figured my recent Mexican alambre had enough going on in terms of peppers, onions, and chilies, so I held off only to soak them in buttermilk and batter them the following day. These things were awesome, and now I know that I will be buying more of these spring onions!

Let’s get started:

1 bunch of spring onions, tips and tails trimmed
2 cups of buttermilk
2 tbsp gochujang paste
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 cup all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
pinch of cracked black pepper
1 cup of cooking oil

Start by adding the spring onions to a sealable bag. Pour in the buttermilk, seal, and let it marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Next, add the gochujang and mayonnaise to a small bowl, and use a fork to blend the two together. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready for use.

The following day, add the flour, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl. Give a good stir. Take the spring onions, draining them from the buttermilk, and add them to the bowl.

Give a good toss to make sure the onions are well coated, then heat up a skillet on medium heat, adding in the oil.

How to make buttermilk fried spring onions

Once the oil comes to temperature, about 350 degrees, gently add in a few spring onions. Cook for a couple of minutes per side (if not fully submerged), until the batter is golden brown. Once golden, remove with some tongs and place on a paper lined plate to remove any excess oil. Season with a pinch of salt. Repeat.

To your serving plate, take the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture, and with a spoon smear it onto the center of the serving plate.

Line up the fried spring onions on top of the sauce, and serve.

My wife, who was hesitant of the mayonnaise mixture, was swiping that spring onion, and biting into the perfectly cooked onion. The onion was nice and crispy on the exterior, while warm and cooked through (not limp) on the inside, and well, the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture just took it one step further.

The only downside to this recipe is that I did not make about 4 bunches of spring onions. Now I know! Hope you enjoy!

Buttermilk Fried Spring Onions

Author: Dax Phillips

Recipe type: Appetizers

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 8 mins

Total time: 13 mins

Serves: 2

Ingredients

1 bunch of spring onions, tips and tails trimmed
2 cups of buttermilk
2 tbsp gochujang paste
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 cup all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
pinch of cracked black pepper
1 cup of cooking oil

Instructions

Start by adding the spring onions to a sealable bag. Pour in the buttermilk, seal, and let it marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Next, add the gochujang and mayonnaise to a small bowl, and use a fork to blend the two together. Cover and place in the refrigerator until ready for use.
The following day, add the flour, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl. Give a good stir. Take the spring onions, draining them from the buttermilk, and add them to the bowl.
Give a good toss to make sure the onions are well coated, then heat up a skillet on medium heat, adding in the oil.
Once the oil comes to temperature, about 350 degrees, gently add in a few spring onions. Cook for a couple of minutes per side (if not fully submerged), until the batter is golden brown. Once golden, remove with some tongs and place on a paper lined plate to remove any excess oil. Season with a pinch of salt. Repeat.
To your serving plate, take the gochujang and mayonnaise mixture, and with a spoon smear it onto the center of the serving plate.
Line up the fried spring onions on top of the sauce, and serve.

Filipino Bicol Express

April 3, 2016 Dax Phillips Leave a comment

It has been weird in some ways not sharing a weekly recipe creation with all of you. Fortunately, however, my family was able to disconnect (well except for my kids and their darn devices) and take a week long road trip. Where you may ask? Tennessee, the whole state and wow was it a blast. I think, and I hope we got so much in during the week. I went down on a mission, a different one than my wife and probably kids for that matter, and that was to try some of the best barbecue and fried chicken I have ever had; hands down ever. In summary Rendezvous ribs and barbecue nachos, Gus’s Fried Chicken, Peg Leg Barbecue ribs (got the last rack and it was only noon (they opened at 11)), and Hatti B’s Nashville hot chicken. So with that said, I’m ready to share with you a great recipe, and one that has some heat to it, much like Hatti B’s!

Bicol Express is a Filipino dish that finally has some heat to it. Don’t get me wrong here, I love pretty much any Filipino dish that has come my way, but I’m always questioning in my mind ‘Do they not use any heat when cooking?’.

This is the perfect answer to that question. I love how the Filipino’s use vinegar, garlic, and lots of black pepper in some of their dishes, and that is right up my alley, but this recipe has me. It’s a stew with very simple ingredients. It’s comforting. It has the perfect heat, and is great served alongside rice.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil
1 lb pork belly, cut into 2 inch cubes
4 tbsp roasted shrimp paste (this stuff stinks but brings such umami)
1 whole onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
14 fresh chilies (Thai Bird, Indian Green Chile, or Serrano) of your choice, stems removed, chiles sliced in half
2 cans of coconut milk
salt and pepper, to taste
cooked rice, optional

Start by heating a medium sized pot (you will cook everything in this pot) on medium heat, then add the oil. Once the oil comes to temperature, add in the cubed pork belly.

Cook the pork belly, turning along the way, until all sides become browned.

Once the pork is browned, add in the onions, garlic, and ginger. Give a good stir, and continue to cook for about 3 minutes or so.

Next add in the shrimp paste. Turn on your vent on high as this stuff has some funk (good funk), and continue to stir. Toss in the chilies, stir again, then add in the coconut milk.

Bring this to a simmer, and cook for about 1 hour, on low, stirring along the way.

Before serving, taste and season with any salt or pepper.

Now you are ready to dig in. I like to serve with a small bowl of rice to the side, along with a soup bowl of the Bicol Express. This dish is rich, creamy, spicy, funky, and overall totally comforting and right up my alley. Don’t be scared of the chiles as you can eat around them. The chilies overall bring that subtle heat to the dish overall, but if you are searching for a bit of that chili punch when eating, go ahead and bite into them! Hope you enjoy, and it’s great to be back!

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