Balsamic Roasted Cipollini Onions

Posted by Cara - February 13th 2010

Balsamic Roasted Cipollini Onions
Makes 2-4 servings

These are fabulous beside grilled meat, and we also use them halved atop our smoked mozzarella tartelettes. Read the original post here.

Ingredients
1lb cipollini onions, skins removed*
½ tsp dried thyme (1 tsp fresh)
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

*NOTE: Blanching the onions makes the skins come off much easier on these little guys. I just boiled some water in my kettle and poured it over the onions in my ceramic mixing bowl and took them out a few minutes later when they were cool enough to touch.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the thyme, sugar, salt, oil, and vinegar. Add the onions and toss to combine. In a medium baking dish or Dutch oven, arrange the onions in one layer. Cover with foil or a lid and roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Uncover and roast for an additional 20 minutes, until the onions are caramelized and fully tender.

Serve alongside steak, or any other delicious meat.

Posted in: Just Recipes

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  • Roz

    I wonder if the recipe would work equally well with regular yellow onions, say - halved?

    • http://www.biggirlssmallkitchen.com/ BGSK

      It wouldn’t be bad, but regular onions don’t have the same sweetness.

      • http://artofroz.com/ Rositsa Zaharieva

        Thanks for the reply. I guess I’ll have to try and see if I like the taste of regular onions cooked that way, because honestly I hadn’t even heard of cipollini onions until I saw your post, let alone see them in the store.

        • schrodie

          I’ve used baby purple ‘boiling’ onions for this recipe when I couldn’t find real cipollini, and it was also quite tasty… a little more oniony than the real deal, but still very good. Often, younger and smaller onions aren’t quite as ‘gamey’ and strong as their more mature and larger versions. You may have to check your local ‘foodie’ grocer, rather than just your neighborhood big box mainstream grocery. I don’t know about your regular store but mine might carry one variety of orange, 4 kinds of apples, 3 kinds of onions (not including green onions)… same stuff all year round with the occasional ‘exotic’ like a tangelo or ‘live’ basil growing in a plastic Dixie cup. Go to a gourmet grocer or one that specializes in produce (such as ‘Sprouts’ or something similar), or your farmer’s market if there’s one nearby. Ethnic grocery stores might be worth checking, as well, for more unusual ingredients. These little guys are a bit tough to find in some places, but well worth the hunt!

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