The bunching onions, which are Allium fistulosum, are the only true perennial onion. This group is commonly known as Welsh onions (not because they are from Wales, by the way, but from the German word 'welsch' meaning foreign), Japanese bunching onions, bunching onions, long green onions, spring onions and scallions. However, people often refer to some non-bunching onions by some of those same names (especially scallions) so it can get confusing. The other onions commonly referred to as perennial onions are Allium cepa var. aggregatum and are not true perennials but act like perennials. How's that for confusing? This includes all the multiplier onions, also variously referred to as walking onions, Egyptian onions, potato onions (nothing potato-like about them). There is no true perennial onion that produces huge bulbs like the biennial onions that we all plant in winter and harvest in late Spring and early Summer. If you like the Allium fistulosum type of onions and want to try others that are not as well-known as Japanese Bunching, Evergreen, Tokyo, etc., then the Oriental seed company based in California, Kitazawa Seeds, offers 8 different varieties of them: Seeds of Bunching Onion Varieties From Kitazawa Seed In some soils the perennial onions may not be perennial. They can have a hard time surviving prolonged excessively wet weather in clay soil, so do best in raised beds with well-drained soil, including very well-amended clay.

I have great results with this tart (from "Once Upon a Tart") - I cheat and use the pre-made Pilsbury pie dough. Provencal Tart with Gruyere Herbs de Provence In preparation for a picnic, make this tart the day before. After the completed tart cools on the counter, cover it with plastic wrap and keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to pack your basket. The tart crust recipe yields two 9-inch crusts. I par-bake (see below) the extra shell, let it cool, pop it in a heavy-duty plastic bag and freeze it. The next time you go to make a tart, your pulse will jump with excitement when you realize you have a homemade shell ready to be filled - on the next sunny day your second tart will come together in a flash. For the Tart: 12-15 plum tomatoes (2 1/2 pounds), cored and cut into 1/4- inch-thick rounds 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 par-baked 9-inch Crunchy Savory Tart Crust 1 cup coarsely grated Gruyere cheese 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence 2 large eggs 1/4 cup light cream 1 teaspoon salt A few turns of freshly ground black pepper For the Crust: 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 3 tablespoons semolina flour 1 teaspoon salt 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes 3 tablespoons cold solid vegetable shortening A glass of ice water 9" tart pan with removable bottom. To Prepare the Crust: 1. Position oven racks so that one is in the center and preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. Put the flours and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, and pulse a couple of times just to integrate the flours and salt. 3. Add the butter and shortening all at once and pulse quite a few times, until the mixture forms little balls, like moist crumbs, and no chunks of butter or shortening remain. You have to pulse, not run, the food processor. The worst thing that can happen at this stage of the crust-making game is for the flours and fats to come together into a paste. 4. Remove the blade from the food processor and dump the dough crumbs into a big bowl. Fill a tablespoon with ice water and sprinkle over the surface of the dough. Repeat with 3 more tablespoons. 5. Use your hands or a wooden spoon to bring the dough together into a ball, adding more water if needed, 1 tablespoon at a time. The dough should be just past crumbly, but holding together. You don't want it to be so wet that it sticks together or turns white in color. 6. Cut the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap. Press each half with the palm of your hand to form a disk. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before rolling out. 7. Roll out 1 disk of dough to 1/4 inch thick. Fit it into your tart pan and chill for 30 minutes. Then use the tines of a fork to prick holes over the bottom of the tart. Line the dough with parchment paper or aluminum foil, and weigh down with pie weights or dried beans. 8. Place the tart shell on the center rack in the oven, and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the paper and weights from the pan. Return it to the oven, and bake until the crust is golden brown and toasted all over, 5-10 more minutes for a par-baked tart shell. For a fully baked tart shell, bake for another 15 minutes at 400 degrees or until it's golden brown all over. 9. Remove the tart shell from the oven and set it on a wire rack to cool. Can be prepared a day in advance. Cover and keep at room temperature. To prepare the tart: 1. Position your oven racks so that one is in the center, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 2. Put the tomato slices in a colander, and place it in the sink. Let the tomatoes sit for 15 minutes to drain off any excess liquid. 3. Spread the mustard evenly over the tart shell with a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle the cheese over the mustard, and sprinkle the herbes de Provence over the cheese. 4. Working from the outside in, lay the drained tomato slices in overlapping concentric circles, making sure the crust is covered entirely. 5. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl, or a large measuring cup with a spout, to break up the egg yolks. Whisk in the cream, salt, and pepper. This is your custard. Pour the custard evenly over the tomatoes until it comes to about 1/4 inch from the top edge of the crust. (If you have extra, don't worry about it; if you don't have enough, pour a little cream on top.) 6. Place the tart on the center rack in the oven, and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until the custard is set. Set custard won't jiggle when you shake the pan and will be firm when you touch it. (The custard will also be hot, so touch it lightly.) The tomatoes in this tart may give off a lot of liquid; don't confuse this with uncooked eggs and accidentally overcook your tart. The liquid will evaporate as the tart cools. 7. Remove the tart from the oven and set it on a wire rack. Allow the tart to cool slightly. 8. To remove the tart from the pan, rest it on a big can. Make sure the tart is steady and balanced. Slide the outside ring of the pan down off the tart. Then place the tart on your work surface, and slide it off the bottom of the pan and onto a rim- less serving dish or a cutting board. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes one 9-inch tart.

This is our current favorite recipe - undoubtedly it would be better if made with homemade stock, but that's one of those things I just never seem to get around to. We don't bother with the large bread croutons - we just sprinkle regular croutons over the top of the soup (Musso's Cheese and Garlic are great!), then lay a couple of slices of Jack cheese and some Parmesan on top before broiling. Becky * Exported from MasterCook * French Onion Soup Gratinee Recipe By : Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 4 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon salt 2 large red onions -- thinly sliced 2 large sweet onions -- thinly sliced 1 can chicken broth -- (48 fluid ounce) 1 can beef broth -- (14 ounce) 1/2 cup red wine 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 2 sprigs fresh parsley 1 sprig fresh thyme 1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar salt and freshly ground black pepper -- to taste 4 thick slices French or Italian bread 8 slices Gruyere or Swiss cheese -- at room temperature 1/2 cup shredded Asiago or mozzarella cheese -- at room temperature 4 pinches paprika 1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in salt, red onions and sweet onions. Cook 35 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are caramelized and almost syrupy. 2. Mix chicken broth, beef broth, red wine and Worcestershire sauce into pot. Bundle the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf with twine and place in pot. Simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard the herbs. Reduce the heat to low, mix in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep over low heat to stay hot while you prepare the bread. 3. Preheat oven broiler. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 3 minutes, turning once, until well toasted on both sides. Remove from heat; do not turn off broiler. 4. Arrange 4 large oven safe bowls or crocks on a rimmed baking sheet. Fill each bowl 2/3 full with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 slice toasted bread, 2 slice Gruyere cheese and 1/4 of the Asiago or mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a little bit of paprika over the top of each one. 5. Broil 5 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. As it softens, the cheese will cascade over the sides of the crock and form a beautifully melted crusty seal. Serve immediately! Source: "www.allrecipes.com" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTES : 11-26-07 Made using croutons instead of bread, with Jack and Parmesan cheese. Used 1 teaspoon dried thyme.

The onion soup I referenced above suggested using a combination of yellow and red onions, I get it is more visually appealing. The same could probably be done in the Martha Stewart recipe. ETA: I was just thinking about the caramelization of the onions and then looked at the recipe on the website and it confirmed for me what my problem with that soup would be. That muddy brown color to me in a cream soup is not appealing. A sprinkling of parsley would help some, but I am a visual eater and that color would be off-putting to me, no matter how good it tastes. Just something to think about if any in your group are similar.