Onion Rings

So I love onion rings.  I can eat them frozen straight out of the bag. I don't care if they are breaded, or fried (although Popeye's has the best), I just love them.  Which is odd, because I hate onions.  So I saw this recipe.  I showed to D.  He said ok.  I was going to help make them, but the kitchen is too small some days and yesterday was one of those days.

These had a really good kick.  D made 2 batches because only 4 servings could be made the first day.  The first day?  Yes, we already had again.

Onion Rings

Photo by ALB

We couldn’t get enough of these crunchy onion rings in the EatingWell Test Kitchen. Try any seasoning blend that you have on hand to add flavor to the breading or substitute 1 teaspoon salt instead. Seasoned whole-wheat breadcrumbs are available in some supermarkets and natural-foods stores. If you can find them, try them in place of the plain breadcrumbs and seasoning blend.

6 servings, 6-7 onion rings each | Active Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients
2 medium yellow onions (used Vidalia onions...probably a bit larger)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups fine dry breadcrumbs, preferably whole-wheat (see Note)  (used regular breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon seasoning blend, such as Cajun, jerk or Old Bay (used Old Bay)
Olive oil or canola oil cooking spray (used Pam)

Preparation
Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 450°F. Coat 2 large rimmed baking sheets with cooking spray.

Cut off both ends of each onion and peel. Slice into 1/2-inch-thick slices; separate into rings. (Discard the smallest rings or reserve for another use.) Place the rings in a medium bowl; cover with cold water.

Combine flour and baking powder in a shallow dish. Lightly beat eggs in another shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs and seasoning in a third shallow dish. Working with one ring at time, remove from the water, letting any excess drip off. Coat in flour, shaking off any excess. Dip in egg and let any excess drip off. Then coat in the breadcrumb mixture, shaking off any excess. Place on the prepared baking sheets. Generously coat the onion rings with cooking spray.

Bake for 10 minutes. Turn each onion ring over and return to the oven, switching the positions of the baking sheets. Continue baking until brown and very crispy, 8 to 10 minutes more.

Nutrition
Per serving : 175 Calories; 3 g Fat; 1 g Sat; 1 g Mono; 79 mg Cholesterol; 29 g Carbohydrates; 7 g Protein; 2 g Fiber; 557 mg Sodium; 136 mg Potassium

2 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 2 starch, 1 fat

Tips & Notes
Ingredient note: Look for fine dry whole-wheat breadcrumbs in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets or natural-foods stores. To make your own, trim crusts from firm sandwich bread. Tear the bread into pieces and process in a food processor until very fine. Spread on a baking sheet and bake at 250°F until dry, about 10 to 15 minutes. One slice of bread makes about 1/3 cup dry breadcrumbs.

From EatingWell: January/February 2010