In an era where 30-minute weeknight meals are the standard, the luxury of slow food often has to fight for its place at the home dinner table. If you scroll down to the instructions you may balk at the 1 hour and 15 minutes that are needed to transform the humble sweet onion into the star of this dish. However, I promise you, much of this recipe is completed with little to no setup, and then comes to life in the oven without much fuss.
This recipe for a Dressed Up Caramelized Onions with Farfalle Pasta is a great way to make a fantastic meal with things you already have in your pantry and delicious Conebella Farm dairy products. Sweet caramelized onions and roasted garlic pair beautifully with Italian flavors from sun dried tomatoes and basil in a sauce made from Conebella Farm Plain Greek yogurt. Al dente farfalle pasta (also known as bow tie pasta) makes for a fancy presentation that offers plenty of nooks and crannies for the sauce and onions to cling to, making for an incredible fuss free, slow cooked meal that is sure to please.
Dressed Up Caramelized Onion Pasta
Ingredients
- 3 or 4 large sweet onions (roughly 1 lb)
- ¼ c. olive oil
- 3 Tbsp. balsamic glaze
- 2 or 3 bulbs of garlic
- 1 lb. of Farfalle (bowtie) pasta
- 1 4.4 oz. jar of sun dried tomatoes, diced, oil removed
- 1 small bunch of basil, finely diced
- 6 oz. plain Greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup Conebella Italian Colby cheese
- ¼ tsp. salt and black pepper, or to taste
Instructions
- Cut off the top of the onion, remove the skin and cut the onion in half, leaving the base intact. Use a mandolin to get uniformly thin slices, cutting the onion until nearly at the base. Discard the base. Note, use a knife to cut the long strands in half if you do not want long onion strands in your pasta.
- Salt the onions and let rest for 15 minutes, or while your oven preheats to 350.
- Take 2 or 3 bulbs of garlic and slice the tops off. Pull off a sheet of aluminum foil roughly the size of a sheet of paper and place 1 bulb in the center and draw the edges toward the center, making a bowl around the bulb. Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Fully enclose the bulb and twist the foil shut to allow the garlic to roast in the oven alongside the onions. Place the garlic bulbs in the oven when you begin cooking the onions. They will be soft when finished cooking.
- When the oven is preheated, drain off any liquid that has released from the onions. Toss the onions in ground pepper, balsamic glaze, and olive oil in a large, high walled baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the onions are fully caramelized. You are looking for soft, sweet and nearly sticky onions. Note: During the cooking process take the onions out and stir them around every 15 or 20 minutes. This will ensure the caramelization process is even, and the onions toward the edge do not burn. Also, it gives a chance for steam to escape allowing for caramelization to occur and ensures you do not end up with a soupy mess at the end.
- With 20 minutes to go, prepare the farfalle pasta by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook as directed, reserving 1 cup of pasta water prior to draining the pasta once they are fully cooked.
- With 5 minutes of cooking time to go, remove the garlic from the oven. Squeeze out the roasted garlic into a small saucepan or bowl, discard the skins. Whisk in the Greek yogurt, ½ of the Italian Colby cheese and a splash of pasta water to create your sauce.
- When the onions are finished, take the baking dish out of the oven and add the sauce along with the remaining Italian Colby, diced sun-dried tomatoes to the onions and mix. Add additional water to thin the sauce as needed. Finally add in the basil and mix.
- Serve immediately, topped Italian Colby, salt and pepper to taste and garnished with a basil leaf.