How to Make Roasted Red Peppers

I love red peppers, especially when they're roasted. But purchasing roasted red peppers is pricy and unnecessary when they are so easy to make yourself.

Ingredients:
Red peppers (or any colored pepper), washed and dried
Vegetable oil (DO NOT use extra-virgin olive oil, it will burn)

Directions:
Preheat your oven to broil. Completely coat your peppers in the oil and place on a foil-lined cookie sheet. Place the pan on the highest rack in your oven. Bake until the skin turns blacks, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and turn using tongs (peppers will be very hot, do not handle with your hands). Repeat three more times until all four sides of the pepper are charred. Don't wander far from your oven while cooking these. You can easily burn them if you're not paying attention.

Once the peppers are blackened, remove from the oven and immediately place in a heat-proof bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Seal well. The steam trapped in the bowl will loosen the skins of the pepper, making them easy to remove.

After approximately 20 minutes or when the peppers have cooled enough to handle, remove the plastic wrap. Carefully peel the skin of the pepper; it will come off easily. Pull the stem out and with it will come most of the seeds. Slit your pepper open with a knife and scrape off any remaining seeds and ribs.

Slice, dice, or puree into a sauce. Good in salads, on sandwiches, or in soups.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

How to Caramelize Onions

Eric hates onions (unless they're onion rings). When he moved out of his parents house, his mom told me they all rejoiced because they could add onions to dishes now. I like onions. They add depth and complexity to dishes. Sadly, now I’m the one who isn't allowed to cook with them (though I sneak minced onions into dishes without telling him all the time). Ironically, it was Eric's mom who introduced me to caramelized onions. Immediately I fell in love with them. I'll put them on just about anything--salads, pizza, quesadillas, sandwiches.

  

 

Ingredients:

1 large red onion
1 large yellow onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
Sea salt
Sugar

Directions:

Cut off the root and top ends of both your onions then peel the onion. To slice your onion, cut the onions in half and lay them flat-side down. Slice onions lengthwise and make them as thick or thin as you’d like. Add the olive oil and butter in a skillet and heat over medium-high heat. When oil begins to shimmer or ripple, add the onions to the pan. Stir to coat the onions then spread them out evenly in the pan. Reduce heat to medium-low and let the onions cook.

After about 10 minutes, sprinkle a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar over the onions. Continue to cook, stirring every 10 to 15 to keep the onions from burning. You will notice the onions browning and shrinking the longer they cook. Once your onion reach the color, texture, and flavor that you want, remove them from the heat. I usually cook mine about an hour and a half. Put them on steak, venison, hamburgers, omelets, or pizza.

Variations:

I like to caramelize my onions in a mixture of olive oil and butter, but if you want, you can just use 3 tablespoons of olive oil. The pinch of sugar helps speed up caramelizing process, but you don’t have to add it. To add more flavor to your onions, add a splash of balsamic vinegar or wine when the onions are just about done. It also de-glazes the pan.

Enjoy!

~Krissy