The summer I was five years old my Aunt Betty outfitted me in ‘berry-picking-clothes’ which consisted of my oldest pair of Buster Brown shoes, a long-sleeved shirt, and a thin rope which had an empty Hills Bros coffee can attached and tied around my waist. I was now ready for my first berry-picking adventure.
Our summer mornings began before dawn with a fire in the woodstove in the kitchen where a double boiler of oatmeal chock full of plump raisins was cooking; and always on top, a mound of butter melting, ready for cinnamon and brown sugar to be added.
Breakfast over, we would load the 1939 Chrysler car with our lunches, step ladders and berry flats. Uncle would point the car in the direction of Centralia, Washington where the biggest and juiciest blackberries could be found growing in cow pastures on bushes ten to 12 feet high and twice as wide. Local feed stores were paying two cents a pound for those berries that would be made into jam for our troops during WWII.
Reaching the countryside, the sun would be rising. Lunches would be stowed in the shade, ladders would be propped again the bushes, and the day of berry picking would begin and not end until dark.
Terrified of the cows in the pasture, I would crawl onto the back seat of the car to sleep away the hot afternoon.
But mostly I remember lunch time…always a peanut butter sandwich with thin slices of a Bermuda onion in between slices of rye bread and I was allowed a half cup of Uncle’s black coffee…I thought I was in ‘heaven’. Onions and peanut butter… I still count this as my favorite sandwich. Precious memories.
Onion season will soon be upon us. June and July will afford us many choices of onions available in our markets, which alone can make cooking an adventure.
The onion’s origin remains a mystery, but we do know onions have been cultivated for at least five thousand years, with the Chinese growing them in their gardens, and the Egyptians worshiping the onion as a symbol of eternity.
Today two types of onions are grown…fresh onions
(Spring/Summer), which are referred to as ‘sweet’ onions, and dry storage (Fall/Winter) onions. Sweet have a higher water content and are served either raw or cooked. The storage onion has a higher sulfur content and less moisture and is best used in cooking, providing a more flavorful taste than sweet onions.
Green onions are small onions that have been harvested before they turn into mature onions. They may be of the same variety as dry ones, but simply picked earlier. These green onions are best used fresh in salads, toppings for baked potatoes or added to mashed potatoes, however they are excellent when grilled, sautéed or in stir-fries. Both tops and long stems can be used. You will find these onions sold under the names of green, spring, scallions and bunching onions tied together with rubber bands.
Red and Green Spring onions are a little larger and more mature than the Green onions described above, as well as having a stronger flavor. “Less” is recommended here if using in salads.
Fresh Onions (Spring/Summer) have thin light-yellow skins with a sweeter and milder flavor than dry storage onions. These onions do not ‘hold’ well, and I find I buy only two or three at a time, to be used within two to three weeks. When buying, avoid a soft or puffy feeling onion and look for spoilage at the stem end of this onion which indicates the onion has been overstored. Fresh onions are best used for sandwiches and salads or very lightly sautéed.
Fresh onions are sold under the names of Maui, OSO Sweet Onions, SpringSweet Onions, 1015 SuperSweet Imperial, Vidalia and WallaWalla.
Dried Onions go through a curing process and have a several thick layers of dark brown skin and a much lower water and sugar content than fresh, allowing them to keep much longer and are best used for cooking.
The most readily available storage onions are Bermuda, small boiling onions, shallots, Cippoline, pearl, Red, Spanish, Torpedo, White and Brown.
French Onion Soup
In soup pot add:
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. butter
6 Medium thinly sliced dry onions
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until lightly brown. Reduce heat and stir until onions are a rich dark brown color. Stir in 2 Tbsp. dry sherry. Cook 5 minutes.
Stir in:
4 cups Brown Beef Stock
1 Tbsp. ‘Better than Bullion’ beef bullion
Cool 30 minutes on medium heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Ladle soup into 8 soup bowls and top with a slice of toasted French bread with ¼ cup grated Gruyere cheese on top of ea. slice. Broil until cheese is melted.
