Instant Pot Caramelized Onions

2 pounds yellow onions, sliced 1/2-inch-thick (8 cups)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Add onions, butter, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to the bowl of a multicooker; stir to combine.  Secure the lid and adjust vent to seal.  Cook on high "Pressure Cook" setting for 5 minutes.  Once cycle is complete, immediately release pressure.  Carefully remove lid.

Strain onions and discard excess liquid.  Return onions to multicooker.  Cook over high "Saute" setting, stirring constantly, until onions are deeply golden and caramelized, 3 to 5 minutes.  Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Makes 2 1/2 cups.

From MarthaStewart.com

Golden Focaccia

Starter

(can replace this starter with 1 cup (8 ounces/227 grams) ripe (fed) sourdough starter, if desired)

1/2 cup (113 grams) cool water

1/16 teaspoon (a big pinch) instant yeast or active dry yeast

1 cup (120 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

Dough

all of the starter (above)

2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast or active dry yeast

1/2 cup (113 grams) lukewarm water

2 cups (241 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons (25 grams) olive oil

Topping

2 tablespoons (25 grams) olive oil

fresh or dried rosemary

coarsely ground black pepper

coarse sea salt or kosher salt

To make the starter:

Mix the water and 1/16 teaspoon yeast, then add the flour, stirring until the flour is incorporated.  The starter will be paste-like; it won't form a ball.

Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 14 hours; the starter will be bubbly.  If you make this in the late afternoon, it'll be ready to go by the next morning.

To make the dough:

Combine the overnight starter with the remaining dough ingredients, and mix and knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine set on the dough cycle — to make a soft, smooth, elastic dough. If you're kneading in a stand mixer, it should take about 5 minutes at second speed.

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 1 hour, or until it's noticeably puffy.

Drizzle about 2 tablespoons olive oil on an 18" x 13" half-sheet pan.  Gently pull and shape the dough into a rough rectangle, and pat it into the pan.  For thinner focaccia (1/2" to 3/4" thick), pat it all the way to the edges of the pan.  For thicker focaccia (3/4" to 1" thick), don't pat all the way to the edges of the pan; leave an inch or so free around the perimeter.

Cover the pan, and allow the dough to rise for 30 minutes.  Use your fingers to make irregularly spaced dimples, pressing down firmly; your fingers should reach the bottom of the pan without actually breaking through the dough.

Re-cover the dough, and let it rise until it's noticeably puffy, about 1 hour.  The dough should have expanded, but shouldn't seem fragile, or look like it might collapse.  Toward the end of the rising time, heat the oven to 425°F.

Spritz the focaccia heavily with warm water, and drizzle with 2 tablespoons olive oil (or enough to collect a bit in the dimples).  Sprinkle with rosemary (or the herb of your choice), black pepper, and coarse salt, to taste.

Place the pan of focaccia onto a middle oven rack.  Bake the focaccia until it's light golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes.  (If you've made small rounds, bake for 15 to 18 minutes.)  Remove the focaccia from the oven, and immediately turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool.

Enjoy focaccia hot from the oven, or warm; focaccia is best the same day it's made, but leftovers can be successfully reheated, either as slices in the toaster or in a 350°F oven, just until warmed through.

Makes one large focaccia.

From King Arthur Flour

Butternut and Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

12 ounces butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 8-ounce packages fresh mushrooms
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage, oregano, or thyme leaves
1 4-ounce goat cheese log
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
Chopped fresh chives for garnish

Heat oven to 400 F.  Toss squash in olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.  Spread into an even layer on a baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes, then remove from oven and toss squash cubes.  Return to oven and bake until tender, about 10 minutes longer.  Transfer squash to a bowl and mash.  Allow to cool for about 10 minutes.  Reduce oven temperature to 375 F.

Meanwhile, rinse mushrooms, and pat dry.  Remove and discard stems.

Mix herbs and goat cheese into mashed squash until combined.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Microwave 2 tablespoons butter until melted.  Stir breadcrumbs into melted butter just until combined.  Spoon desired amount of goat cheese mixture into each mushroom cap.  Press about 1 tablespoon crumb mixture onto filling of each mushroom. 

Place mushrooms in a single layer on a lightly greased wire rack set in a baking pan.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until breadcrumbs are toasted and golden brown.  Garnish with chopped chives.

Makes about 12 appetizer servings.

From MyRecipes.com, with changes

Halloumi and Grape Skewers

300 grams of halloumi cheese, cut into rough 1-inch squares
18-20 red grapes
Olive oil
Black pepper
75 grams honey
25 grams salted butter
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves

Heat oven to 425 F.  Soak wooden skewers for 30 minutes.  Line a baking tray with parchment paper.  

Skewer the halloumi and grapes onto the soaked wooden skewers until all the ingredients have been used up.  Toss in a little olive oil and season with black pepper.

Place onto the prepared baking tray and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until golden.

Whilst the halloumi is baking, place the honey and butter into a small saucepan and heat, stirring, until the butter has dissolved.  Remove from the heat and stir in the oregano leaves.

When the halloumi skewers are done baking, place on  serving dish and drizzle with the oregano honey.

Serves 6.

From Tastemade UK 

Nonnettes (French Gingerbread Cakes)

1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup water
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups (200 grams) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (80 grams) rye flour
1 tablespoon homemade pain d'epices spice blend
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon Cointreau or orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons fresh orange zest
1 large egg yolk
Blackcurrant jam (or orange marmalade, blueberry or blackberry jam)

Lemon glaze:
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Heat oven to 375 F.

In a small saucepan, stir together honey, brown sugar, water, butter, and oil.  Heat over medium heat, stirring, just until melted and smooth.  Remove from heat and let sit a couple of minutes while preparing the dry ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl, add the flours, pain d'epices spice blend, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Stir to combine.

Pour the honey mixture into the flour and stir to combine.  Add the Cointreau, vanilla extract, orange zest, and egg yolk, and stir until combined.

Butter the wells of a mini muffin pan or mini cheesecake pan.  Fill each well with batter 1/2 to 1/3 full.  Place a teaspoon of jam on each.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown and the dough springs back when gently pressed.

While the nonnettes are baking, prepare the glaze by combining the confectioner's sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl.  Whisk until the sugar is dissolved and the glaze is smooth.

While the nonnettes are still warm and in the pan, spoon the glaze over them, letting it drip down the sides.  Let them cool in the pan; this will allow the glaze to penetrate the cakes.  Once cool, remove the nonnettes from the pan.

Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Makes 24+.

From The Daring Gourmet blog

French Gingerbread (Pain d'epices) Spice Blend

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teasoons ground ginger
4 whole star anise
4 whole green cardamoms, seeds removed (shells discarded)
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground mace
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon anise seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Place all spices in a coffee or spice grinder and grind to a smooth powder.  Store in an airtight jar away from direct sunlight or hot temperatures.  Best when used within a few months but, for optimal flavor, use within a few weeks.

Makes about 4 tablespoons.

From The Daring Gourmet blog

Pizza al Taglio Dough

2 2/3 cups (14 2/3 ounces) bread flour
1 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) water, room temperature
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 teaspoons table salt
Vegetable or olive oil

Whisk flour and yeast together in medium bowl.  Add room-temperature water and oil and stir with wooden spoon until shaggy mass forms and no dry flour remains.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 10 minutes.  Sprinkle salt over dough and mix until fully incorporated.  Cover bowl with plastic and let dough rest for 20 minutes.

Using wet hands, fold dough over itself by gently lifting and folding edge of dough toward middle.  Turn bowl 90 degrees; fold again.  Turn bowl and fold dough 4 more times (a total of 6 turns).  Cover bowl with plastic and let dough rest for 20 minutes.  Repeat folding technique, turning bowl each time, until dough tightens slightly, 3 to 6 turns total.  Cover bowl with plastic and let dough rest for 10 minutes.

Liberally oil the bottom of a 13 by 9-inch baking pan.  Transfer dough to prepared pan and coat top of dough lightly with oil.  Gently press dough into a 10 by 7-inch oval of even thickness.   Cover pan tightly with plastic and refrigerate for at least 16 hours or up to 24 hours.

After the 16-24 hours rest time, brush top of dough with 2 tablespoons oil.  Oil rimmed baking sheet, including rim.  Invert prepared sheet on top of pan and flip, allowing dough to fall onto sheet (you may need to lift pan and nudge dough at 1 end to release).  Using your fingertips, gently dimple dough into an even thickness and stretch toward edges of baking sheet to form 15 by 11-inch oval.  Lightly oil top of dough, cover loosely with plastic, and let rest until slightly puffy, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.

Thirty minutes before baking, adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 450 F.  Just before baking, use your fingertips to gently dimple dough into even thickness, pressing into corners of baking sheet. 

Spread dough with 1/2 cup of any sauce, if desired, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil, spreading it evenly over the surface.  Add toppings if desired.  Transfer baking sheet to oven and bake until bottom of crust is evenly browned and top is lightly browned in spots, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking.

Transfer baking sheet to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes.  Run knife around rim of sheet to loosen pizza.  Transfer pizza to cutting board and cut into 8 rectangles.  Add any additional toppings as desired.

Serves 4 to 6.

From America's Test Kitchen, with minor changes

Ukrainian Honey Cake

2 large eggs, at room temperature, separated

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup honey

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup strong brewed coffee, cooled to lukewarm

Set rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350 F.  Butter a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan, then dust it with flour.

Beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and smooth.  Add the honey and melted butter and mix until blended and smooth.

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl.  Add half the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and stir in.  Stir in the coffee, then stir in the remaining dry ingredients.

Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.  Fold them into the batter, then stir gently several times.  The batter will be quite wet.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.  Let cool for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and place on a rack to cool completely before slicing.  Eat plain or buttered, or with whipped cream.

Makes 1 loaf.

From The Wednesday Chef blog

Baked Artichoke Pasta with Creamy Goat Cheese

Salt as needed
1 pound fusilli, farfalle, or other short pasta
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 large bunch scallions, thinly sliced, whites and greens separated
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more for serving
4 ounces (1/2 cup) cream cheese, cubed
6 ounces goat cheese, cubed
3 14-ounce cans artichoke hearts (not marinated), drained and cut into 1-inch pieces
6 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (1 1/2 cups)
1 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Bread crumb and Parmesan topping:
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 cups panko or other breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 425 F.  Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil.  Cook pasta according to package directions until 3 minutes short of al dente.  Reserve 3 cups pasta water, then drain.

Meanwhile, in a large oven-proof skillet, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Cook scallion whites until softened, about 5 minutes, then add garlic and cook another 1 minute.  Stir in red pepper flakes and cook for another 30 seconds.

Whisk in 1 1/2 cups pasta water, cream cheese and goat cheese, and simmer, whisking, until smooth.  Stir in artichokes, mozzarella, parsley, and reserved scallion greens.  Then stir in cooked pasta and black pepper.  Add more pasta water if it seems too dry; you want this to be fairly liquid, because the pasta will soak up the sauce as it bakes.  Taste and add some salt if needed.

Make the topping:
Add the butter and oil to a pan over medium heat.  When the butter has melted, add the minced garlic and and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the breadcrumbs and cook until browned, 3 to 5 minutes.  Combine with Parmesan.  Sprinkle evenly across pasta.

Bake pasta until filling is bubbly, about 10 to 20 minutes.  Serve drizzled with olive oil and with more red pepper flakes on the side.

Serves 6.

From New York Times Cooking, with changes