Add Vidalia onions for some tasty dishes

Our newly 5-year-old Lexie went to church Sunday morning sporting her new "button dress" she and grandma made together. My mom has been a seamstress all of her working career and her very large button collection in a very large box has been a point of magnificent fascination for all of grandchildren. Lexie in particular has taken a great interest in it and one day she asked grandma if she would make her a blue dress and they could sew buttons all over it. Well, I don't think I even need to say that grandma got right on that. She made a darling little top and full skirt and then they together sewed some 80 different buttons all over it. There are many individual ones, some in clusters as a field of stars, an angel made with buttons and ribbon and even a little flower garden with button flowers.

Grandmas are the best gift that children have and our children are very lucky to have two great-grandmothers, one Grandma and one Nana. All mothers need to be saluted on Mother's Day, but especially these very important women in the lives of our children.

We are right in the middle of Vidalia onion season and the crop is a bumper one. Most of the Vidalia onions we have in stores here are fresh this season from Georgia, where these sweet onions are grown. The Vidalia onion is called the sweetest onion in the world.

I went online and found at least 10 different Vidalia onion farms with Web sites and pulled off a couple of recipes for you to try. The White Castle hamburger one sounded so different I just had to include it. Boxed White Castle hamburgers can be purchased in the frozen food section of grocery stores.

Baked White Castle Vidalia Spread

This cracker spread combines several unique flavors to produce an unforgettable taste experience.

14 finely chopped White Castle hamburgers; buns removed

2 1/2 cup chopped Vidalia onions

1 3/4 cup mayonnaise

2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1/2 cup crumbled bacon

Crushed crackers (topping)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine hamburgers, onion, mayonnaise, cheese and bacon. Mix well. Spread into casserole dish and bake 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees. Let stand for 10 minutes. Serve dip on toasted buns or crackers.

Serves 14.

This is good served as a main course for a luncheon, or as an appetizer at a fancy party.

Vidalia Stuffed Onions

6 Vidalia onions

1/4 cup melted butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for stuffing:

1 pound spicy sausage

2 cups minced onions (use the centers that you scooped out)

1 apple, peeled and diced

1/3 cup chopped pecans

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

1/4 cup white or yellow grated sharp Cheddar

1/2 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese

Ingredients for lemon butter sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup white wine or dry vermouth

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

1 teaspoon chopped shallot

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons cold, cubed, unsalted butter

Cut the top off the onions and remove the outer section, being careful not to score into the onion. Scoop out the center of the onion with a small ice-cream scoop or serrated spoon. Place the onions in a baking dish, drizzle with 1/4 cup melted butter and add salt and pepper to taste. Pour water into the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake in a 350-degree oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until the onions are tender.

Brown sausage in a skillet over high heat. Add minced onions and peeled and diced apple. Stir in chopped pecans, chopped parsley, grated orange peel and grated white or yellow sharp Cheddar. After the mixture is sautéed and fully cooked, drain and use it to fill the baked onions. Sprinkle the top of the onions with remaining grated sharp Cheddar and return to the oven long enough to warm the onions and melt the cheese.

To make the sauce, combine olive oil, white wine or dry vermouth, chopped garlic, chopped shallot, lemon zest and lemon juice in a saucepan and reduce until there's a syrup in the pan. Pour in heavy cream and cold, cubed, unsalted butter and whisk together until butter is melted. Drizzle over the baked onions and garnish each onion with a whole pecan.

I realize you may not enjoy much soup in the warmer months of the year, but this one might be worth a try right now while the fresh onion crop is at it's peak.

Vidalia Onion Soup

Toss and roast 40 minutes at 425 degrees:

3 Vidalia onions, cut in wedges

2 tablespoons olive oil.

Add 5 cloves garlic, mashed, and roast 20 minutes longer.

Add 1/2 cup dry sherry and reduce until evaporated.

Add the following ingredients; cover and roast 20 minutes:

5 cups chicken broth

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

Pinch of red pepper

Salt to taste

Garnish Soup with plain yogurt, crushed peanuts, or sprigs of fresh thyme.

The final texture should be smooth with pieces of roasted onion.

Jodi Thompson from Jackson, Mo., has two recipes to share with you today. She is so good to write in and share her recipes. Maybe that will inspire you to do the same.

Beer, Cheddar and Onion Bread

2 packages dry yeast

Pinch sugar

1 cup very warm water

1 can (12 oz) beer

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

5 to 7 cups flour

1 cup finely shredded mild Cheddar cheese (4 oz)

1/2 cup minced onions

Sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over very warm water in large bowl. Stir to dissolve yeast. Let stand 10 minutes or until bubbly. Heat beer, butter, sugar and salt over low heat just until butter is melted. Let cool to lukewarm. Stir 1-1/2 cups flour into yeast mixture, beating until smooth.

Stir in cooled beer mixture, cheese and onions. Add 1 more cup flour, beating until smooth. Stir in just enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough. Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 7 minutes. Press dough into greased bowl; turning over to bring greased side up; cover. Let rise in a warm place, away from draft until double in volume, about 1 hour. Punch dough down; divide in half. Shape each half into a loaf and place in two greased 9-by-5-by-3 loaf pans, or shape one half into a loaf and divide other half into 14 equal pieces.

Form each piece into smooth rounds about 3 inches across. Place on greased cookie sheets which have been sprinkled with cornmeal. Rolls should be about 3 inches apart. Cover bread and rolls. Let rise in warm place, away from draft until double in volume, about 1 hour. Bake in moderate 350 degree oven for 40 minutes for bread and 30 minutes for rolls, or until bread sounds hollow when tapped with fingers. Remove from pans; cool on wire racks.

Jodi said in her comments that when she planned to make this casserole she would add garlic and substitute non-fat evaporated milk for the cream. She said that this recipe was sure to put a smile on the face of anyone who likes spinach and even a few who don't.

Baked Spinach Casserole

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

3 tablespoons butter

2 cups light cream

3 tablespoons grated onion

2 packages frozen spinach, thawed and drained

1 pound chopped mushrooms

3 tablespoons grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese

3 tablespoons flour

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Sauté onions and mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes. Blend in flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Gradually add cream, stirring to boiling point. Taste for seasoning. In buttered casserole, spread half the spinach; cover with half of the mushroom sauce, then repeat. Sprinkle with the grated cheese. Set in pan of hot water. Bake 40 minutes. Serves 6 to 8.

I hope each of you will be blessed with the very best Mother's Day. Having children of my own sure makes you understand the magnitude of a mother's love. Enjoy your day.

Have a great week and happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699; Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.