Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 27, 1991 TAG: 9102270017
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Toni Burks
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The onion's versatility, flavor and low-calorie content make it an all-purpose food. Most chefs use it to add spice and texture to recipes. Braver cooks serve the vegetable as a main dish - either stewed with tomatoes, stuffed with rice, or tossed with pasta.
Onions are plentiful and cheap. Americans consume about 18 pounds of onions per person each year, according to the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association, a trade group based in Alexandria, Va. The amount is expected to increase as people substitute onions for other high-fat foods.
With only 55 calories in a cup of chopped, raw onion, trace amounts of fat and no cholesterol, nutritionists believe that Americans can't go wrong adding more of the vegetable to their diet. "You can comfortably increase the amount of onion called for in a recipe without significantly increasing the calories," said Colleen Pierre, a Baltimore-based nutrition consultant.
The vegetable is also a good source of potassium - with 248 milligrams per cup - and has a fair amount of vitamin C - 13 mg per cup. One medium-sized apple, for example, contains about 8 mg of vitamin C.
Onions - a member of the lily family - have sparked the interest of scientists who are investigating what effect, if any, the vegetable may have on retarding cancer. Based on preliminary research, certain compounds in an onion may prevent a cell from either becoming cancerous or hinder the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells, according to Vicente Notario, associate professor of radiation medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine.
Although the onion has enjoyed a medicinal reputation since the time of the Egyptians and is considered among the world's oldest cultivated vegetables, surprisingly little research has been done to identify the bulb's molecular structure. Scientists suspect it may actually have thousands of compounds, said Terrance Leighton, professor of biochemistry at the University of California at Berkeley.
Some compounds are more powerful than others. Squeamish chefs avoid slicing raw onions because of propanethial S-oxide - an ingredient that creates a mild form of sulfuric acid when mixed with any water, such as teardrops, and causes people to weep.
To avoid the stinging vapors, tortured chefs have tried methods that range from wearing swimming goggles or a scuba mask to rubbing lemon juice on the knife before cutting. The National Onion Association, an industry group in Greeley, Colo., suggests storing an onion in the refrigerator first. Then cut off the top of the onion and peel the outside layers while leaving the root end on. Slicing the onion under cold, running water is another alternative. - The Washington Post
\ MICROWAVE IT This rendition of jambalaya is a flavorful, fabulous fake. The traditional Louisiana seasonings - onion, green pepper and garlic - are cooked with the sauce instead of in fat. Smoked turkey sausage replaces the usual pork sausage, reducing the fat content in each serving to just 5 grams.
Turkey and shrimp jambalaya
1 14 1/2-oz. can tomatoes, cut up
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 Tbsps. tomato paste
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning, crushed
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. pepper
Hot pepper sauce
1 1/2 cups chopped green pepper
1 cup quick-cooking rice
3/4 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and halved lengthwise
1/4 lb. smoked turkey sausage, cut into 1/4-in. slices and halved.
In 3-qt. microwave-safe casserole combine undrained tomatoes, onion, broth, tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf, Italian seasoning, salt, chili powder, pepper and a few dashes hot sauce. Cover and cook on high (100 percent power) 5 minutes. Stir in green pepper. Cover and cook 2 minutes. Stir in rice, shrimp and sausage. Cover and cook 3 to 5 minutes more or until shrimp just turn pink, stirring once. Let stand, covered, 1 to 2 minutes or until rice is tender. Remove bay leaf. Makes 4 servings. - Associated Press
\ LIPODUCKTION Duck is a fatty meat, but duckling processors, like beef and pork growers, have been breeding for lower fat in recent years. Concord Duckling boasts that 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) of its duck meat (skinned) now contains 27 grams of protein but only 7 grams of fat (1.49 grams of that being saturated). With these new lean, mean ducks, though, we're not sure what we think about the Concord product Duck Bites. - Los Angeles Times
\ DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE Two great minds were on the same track when these recipes were created. Both boast the same flavors - peanut butter and chocolate - but one is a cupcake and the other is a cookie.
Peanut butter cups
1 3/4 cups all-purpose or unbleached flour
1 3/4 cups packed brown sugar
3 tsps. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
cup shortening
cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
24 miniature milk chocolate-covered peanut butter cups (coin size)
Line 24 muffin cups with paper baking cups. In large bowl, combine all ingredients except peanut butter candy cups; blend at low speed until moistened. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Fill paper-lined muffin cups 2/3 full. Press 1 peanut butter cup into batter in each muffin cup until top edge of candy is even with top of batter. Bake in 350-degree oven 18 to 28 minutes or until tops spring back when touched lightly in center. Serve warm or cool. Makes 24 cupcakes.
Peanut butter cup cookies
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
Miniature milk chocolate-covered peanut butter cups (coin size) Thoroughly cream butter, peanut butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla and beat well. Combine flour, soda and salt and add to creamed mixture. Place rounded teaspoons of dough in greased miniature muffin pans. Bake in 350- degree oven 10 to 12 minutes or until cookies puff up and are barely done. Remove from oven and immediately push 1 peanut butter cup into each cookie-filled muffin cup. Cookies will deflate and form tart shell around peanut butter cup. Let stand in pan, then refrigerate until chocolate is no longer shiny. Gently lift each cookie out of pan with tip of knife. Makes about 2 dozen cookies. - From wire reports
by CNB