it's recipe time...

... I love onion marmalade, especially with hard cheese, but I've got a peed off with paying £2.99 for a small jar of something that claims to be hand-made and "original", so I'm going to make my own. I studied the ingredients list on the brands that I like, and looked up recipes on the web, and this is what I came up with -

Red Onion Marmalade
Ingredients - 450g/1lb red onions - peeled and sliced, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp pine kernels (optional) 150 ml red wine, 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar, 15 black peppercorns - crushed, 2 Bay leaves, Salt to taste, 1 teaspoon lemon juice.

Method - In a medium size stainless-steel pan gently fry the onions in the olive oil for about 8 mins until soft and slightly caramelized, then add sugar and stir over heat for a further 2 mins. Add the vinegar and red wine to the pan. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the bay leaves, crushed peppercorns, and salt to taste. Cook over a low heat for 45 minutes until it reaches the consistency of marmalade (make sure the bay leaves are covered). Add lemon-juice and cook for a few minutes until reduced again. Add wine if needed to keep marmalade from scorching whilst cooking. Remove the bay leaves.
Whilst still hot - Put in a hot, oven-sterilised jar and seal. Should keep up to 6 months un-opened and then a few weeks in the fridge once opened.

Serve on slices of toasted french bread, garnished with chopped hard-boiled egg and watercress. Also with cheesy oatcakes (Staffs), hard cheese, most meats, sausages or spread over cream cheese and served with cream crackers/water biscuits. A few tablespoons will also improve gravies. Good with toad in the hole.

I'm going to make some tomorrow - I'll tell you how it turns out, although I expect it will be better if it is kept a few weeks...

Updated by Tone 21:40 7/1/06