Report on the Spinach-Stuffed Onions- post #1829. I made them last evening

C

CathyZ

Well-known member
I used Parmesan instead of Gruyere in the spinach mixture (rec says either) The flavor was good, but the textures were not great together as the steamed onion got slimy. If anyone else tries this rec you should make certain the spinach mixture is BONE dry before stuffing the onion. The spinach mixture has butter and half/half in it along with chopped steamed onion so it is not easy to dry it out. I steamed the onions to different stages to see what was best- I made 6 onion halves stuffed. The onions that were the right texture were not cooked enough and even with the final baking in the oven they did not finish properly. The onions that were steamed far enough turned slimy and didn't hold up.

I will say the stuffed onion halves were gorgeous on a plate- I topped them (after they came out of the oven) with a tiny slice of cherry tomato just for the color. I served with grilled, marinated pork tenderloin and roasted Kabocha squash. Again, the flavors were great but those darn onions got slimy.

 
Cathy, I'll post your notes along with the recipe so if and when I make them I'll remember. Is

Kabocha 'close' to anything we have stateside?

 
Marsha, you can buy them at Publix or SweetBay in the late summer or fall. Look for them alongside

the butternut, acorn, etc.

 
Cathy, you might be interested in the "Spinach-Stuffed Mushrooms" in Favorites under Appetizers.

 
I'm looking at Julia Child's stuffed onion recipe and she has you hollow out the onion before

cooking it. It calls for whole onions, hollowed out with a melon baller to a 3/8" shell, and boiled gently for 10-15 minutes. The insides are chopped and sauteed for the stuffing.

I imagine it would work for half onions but I'm not sure how the color of red onions would hold up to boiling. Just a thought.

Sounds like a delicious menu!

 
Yes Joe, I made JC's onions a while back- I used sturdy white onions then and

they turned out pretty well. The purple onions seem to have a little softer membrane between the layers of onion and it turned to slime. Maybe making with white onions might be better. I think I would also use raw shallot instead of chopping the steamed onion pulp to add to the spinach too- the stuffed onions bake just long enough to heat everything through and that would be enough for finely-minced shallot.

The color did bleach out some when steamed but not too badly. By the time you pile the spinach stuff on top and inside you can hardly see the onion half anyway.

Thanks to both you and Ruth for suggestions.

 
Even with softer purple onions, I'm thinking that cooking the shells just enough, >>>

without having to cook a whole unscooped onion half, might prevent slime (EEEEEEEWWWW)

Now I wonder if red onions have to be pre-cooked at all; they're so tender to start with, maybe you could just hollow them out and stuff them raw?

 
I tried different steaming times to see- and found this

The onions do need some pre-cooking unless you leave just one "layer" of onion shell before filling with the spinach mix- I think you could get by with raw onion if you did this AND you could get rid of the membrane that turns to slime in the process of baking. The recipe calls for baking just enough to warm the whole stuffed onion through.

I tried steaming for different amounts of time and they all pretty much turned out slimy.

I'm not certain I will try these again- next time I probably will make a spinach-stuffed tomato or Portabella mushroom or something. I like food stuffed in food. It looks so good on the plate.

 
I love stuffed vegetables too! It's so nice to do several kinds as a first course ..

and not TOO masochistic!

Too bad this didn't work out--the flavors sounded so good.

 
ah, but try it yourself, Joe- you may have different results. The other thing I love beside stuffed

veggies is bundles- I used to julienne carrots and zucchini then take large zukes and large-ended carrots, cut "o"rings out of each then stuff the zuke ring with carrots and the carrot rings with zukes then steam and put one bundle of each on every plate. Talk about your masochistic. Ah to be young again....

 
You're making my head spin! I don't know if I was ever that young, lol, but

it sounds spectacular.

 
Oh Cathy, I hear you...

I used to spend days futzing over little details like that, only to have everyone rave about some simple toss out thing I spent 30 seconds whipping together, or to make comments about some dish being "weird" for Thanksgiving. Sigh.

I have greatly simplified my cooking style as I have gotten older, especially dinner parties. And most everyone seems to always be so much more impressed over a giant roasted joint of meat vs. a painstakingly detailed dish of a "butterfiled, stuffed, grilled, wrapped, baked, and sauced" flight of fancy.

Now, when I get a wild hair for grand baroque cooking, I do it for just ourselves since at least I know the work will be appreciated by all who partake. : )

 
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