Great Meals for a Change

Pasta with Caramelized Onions

An indulgence of caramelized onions tossed with olive oil and parmesan.

Ingredients:

• 10 or 12 medium to large onions (about 4 pounds)
• ⅔ cup plus 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 lb linguine, spaghetti, capellini, fettucine or other long pasta (use rice pasta for gluten free option)
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

• Thinly slice the onions (a food processor's slicing disk can help with this). Place them in a large dry skillet over medium-low heat and cover. Check and stir every 5 minutes. The onions will first give up lots of liquid, then dry out; after 20 to 30 minutes, when they begin to brown and stick to the pan, remove the cover. Add the ⅔ cup of olive oil, along with a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to medium.
• Bring large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Continue to cook the onions until they are uniformly brown and soft, almost pasty, 10 to 20 minutes more. Cook the pasta until tender but not mushy.
• Taste the onions and adjust the seasoning; drain the pasta, reserving about a cup of the cooking water. In a warm bowl, toss together the pasta and onions, along with the remaining oil and a little of the cooking water if necessary to allow the mixture to coat the pasta evenly. Toss with some Parmesan and serve, passing more Parmesan at the table.