roasted garlic & caramelized onions

These two recipes are for "ingredients" that I'll be using in this week's recipes. Both roasted garlic and caramelized onions are extremely versatile (and delicious) so it's a good idea to know how to make them. I would suggest roasting garlic at the same time as something that you already plan on roasting because running a whole oven for just a bulb or two of garlic seems like a waste. Caramelize onions are time consuming but require little effort so make large batches and freeze the leftovers so they are ready to use at any time. I made one bulb of garlic here and caramelized three onions (although you'll probably only use one onion worth at a time).


ROASTED GARLIC




Total Recipe cost: $0.35
Servings Per Recipe: variable
Cost per serving: $0.35 per bulb
Prep time: 2 min. Cook time: 45 min. Total: 47 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
1 large bulb	fresh garlic	$0.25
1 Tbsp	olive oil	$0.10
TOTAL		$0.35

STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Using a sharp knife, slice the top 15% of the garlic bulb off, exposing the tops of each clove.



STEP 2: Place the bulb in a square of foil. Carefully pour 1 Tbsp of olive oil over the top of the open bulb, making sure some gets down between the cloves and peel.



STEP 3: Bring the edges of the foil up and fold them over multiple times until you have enclosed the garlic tightly in a foil "packet". Place on a baking sheet with whatever else you may be roasting and roast for 45 minutes. Let cool before opening the packet. The soft roasted garlic can easily be squeezed out of the clove casing to use in a recipe. Roasted garlic is also fantastic served simply smeared on a piece of french bread!

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CARAMELIZED ONIONS



Total Recipe cost: $1.27
Servings Per Recipe: variable
Cost per serving: $0.42 per onion
Prep time: 2 min. Cook time: 45 min. Total: 47 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
3 medium	yellow onions	$1.12
2 Tbsp	butter	$0.15
TOTAL		$1.27

STEP 1: Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Slice the onions and add to the pan.



STEP 2: Cook over medium heat for 45 minutes or until the onions become soft, golden brown and sugary sweet. You will need to stir the onions every 5-10 minutes to make sure they are cooking evenly. The onions are done when all of the moisture is gone, the sugars have released and there is a sticky brown sugary coating on the onions and the bottom of the pan. Be sure not to raise the heat too high or else you will burn the sugars and the flavor will be ruined.



Caramelized onions are great in/on casseroles, pizzas, sandwiches, salads and more!