Recipes from Tuesday

I'm so glad that you all liked the treats that I brought last night. In the interest of keeping up my awesome procrastination record, I thought I'd post them now. (I really should be packing and baking. ;-) )

Pan-fried Onion Dip (from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook)

2 large yellow onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup good mayonnaise

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the onions and mix well. Taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.

Cut the onions in half and then slice them into 1/8-inch thick half-rounds. (You will have about 3 cups of onions.) Heat the butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, cayenne, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until the onions are browned and caramelized. Allow the onions to cool.

* I use only 2T butter and 2T olive oil to saute the onions. This time, instead of using 1/2 cup sour cream and 1/2 mayo, I used 1/3 cup Greek yogurt, 1/3 cup light sour cream and 1/3 cup light mayo to try to make it a little lighter.

Chicken Sausage in Puff Pastry (adapted slightly from Lamb Sausage in Puff Pastry from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook)

4 sun-dried tomato chicken sausages (I used Trader Joe's)
1 sheet commercial puff pastry, thawed
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk, for egg wash
olive oil
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a saute pan, heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Add sausage and cook until the sausage is browned on all sides. Cool to room temperature.

Unfold the puff pastry on a lightly floured board, and brush the top side with mustard. Cut the puff pastry in half lengthwise and crosswise to make four equal pieces. Place one sausage at the edge of each piece and roll it up tightly, overlapping the end by 1/2-inch and sealing the pastry by brushing the edge with water. Roll the other 3 pieces of sausage in puff pastry. Place the 4 rolls, seam side down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with the egg wash. Lightly score each roll diagonally to make 5 or 6 equal pieces. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until browned. Slice and serve hot with mustard. (I like to use a combination of equal parts Dijon mustard and mango chutney or Dijon mustard and apricot preserves.)

Dawn K was kind enough to post the Peanut Butter Cookie recipe in the sidebar, so you can check it out over there.

I hope everyone has a delicious Thanksgiving! Happy Knitting in between friends and family. (I love a long car ride for that reason only!)

See you next Wednesday, Loopy Ladies!
Kathleen