OSUEngineer, I generally have the same experience except when the weather is wildly fluctuating from too hot to too cold weekly. When that happens, often the bigger ones bolt. It is that whole biennial thing that happens once they're a certain size and then exposed to a week of very cold weather. It really doesn't happen that often though. The smallest ones usually aren't worth planting---I mean the really tiny ones. I usually just drop them into the path to blend in with the mulch. I like the medium-sized plants since they are the easiest to keep happy, but this year even th great big ones stayed happy. You know, if the onions are happy, I'm happy. Since we haven't had that erratic weather down here this year, our onions are way ahead of their usual schedule. It is sort of astonishing to see what happens when the onions haven't had to deal with much cold weather at all since they were planted. I rarely have had onions reach the 15-16 leaf stage in May, when they reach it at all, and this year all the larger ones just about have hit that point. I feel like I walk through a forest of onions every day, but I'm not complaining. I'm so glad to hear that buying direct from Dixondale is working out so well for you. It was a gentleman from Texas, now deceased, who used to post here on GW as GoneFishin' who convinced me to try ordering from Dixondale many years ago. He always had the most beautiful onions and so I decided to try ordering direct to see if I could get onions as nice as his. I think maybe this year I finally have onions as big and as happy and as healthy as his always were, but it has taken me the better part of 2 decades to get there. See how nice it can be when the weather cooperates? When a few of mine have died like yours did, I always assume they might have had a disease or got too dried out after being pulled or whatever. It happens. I think Dixondale overpacks to account for that. Kim, Normally, if you cut off the necks instead of curing the onions properly, the onions will not store as well, but much depends on the varieties too. With all the sweet southern type varieties (most short day and intermediate day length types fall in this category), they really don't store for a real long time anyway so it might not hurt to cut off their leaves. Would I do it? No. But, these are your onions and you're the Queen of your garden so you should feel free to do whatever you choose. To understand why curing them with the leaves on is important, I'll just say that as the onions cure, the necks dry and shrink down. During this process the onion skins/wrappers are drying and sort of shriveling and pulling tight. Allowing this to happen naturally takes a while but is important---there's more to gardening than just the growing---you want to maximize your harvest's usage via proper curing and storing. The wrappers/scales/skins (whatever you choose to call them) will help protect the onions in storage. If you cut off the leaves before the drying process finishes up, the skins may not dry properly and pull tight to protect the onions from bacteria. Normally, once the skins pull tight and dry out, then you can cut the leaves off about 1" above the bulb. The reason you don't cut closer is because cutting too close can allow bacteria to infiltrate. If you prefer and if your leaves have dried down really well without getting mildew or fungi or anything, you can braid the onions together like you do with garlic. With storage onions (generally the long day length types and a few of the intermediate types), it is very important to let them cure properly. If cured properly they can last in storage from 4 to 10 months, which is just awesome. Imagine never having to buy an onion at the grocery store all year. Cutting off the leaves too early without curing properly could interfere in the curing process and cause them to sprout really early instead of storing for months. So, weigh your options. If you're wanting to cut some to use the greens, try it with a few and see how they store and then you can determine if you want to try it with more of them. The best way to learn is to experiment to see what works for you in your particular conditions and circumstances. I learned how important proper curing was early in my adult gardening life by not curing properly----that is why I feel like it is so important. When I slowed down and stopped being so impatient and allowed them to cure properly on their schedule as they needed instead of on/by my schedule, my storage time of all varieties pretty much doubled. For me, there was a huge lesson in that. You know, I helped my dad all the time when I was a kid--toddler-sized, really, through young adulthood and I never really thought much about what he did or how he did it. I just did things the way he'd shown me or told me and that was that. I didn't question his methods. They worked. I might not have understood why they worked, but I knew they did. Later on, as an adult with my own garden and with Alzheimer's Disease stealing his mind, I wish I previously had asked a lot more questions and written down his answers while he still could provide those answers. By the time I wanted/needed to ask questions to learn why we did things a certain way, he no longer could answer those questions. It took me another 10 years on my own to develop a good understanding of it all---not so much an understanding of what he did, but of why he did it and why it mattered and why I needed to do it too. I always try to explain the why's when I can because he didn't explain them to me and that caused me, eventually, to have a much longer learning curve. Dawn

It does sound lovely, except for the flat rolls, but enough mojitos and you're good, LOL. I love your description of your family, it sounds a lot like mine except we don't have a Mexican. Yet. Everyone from the college educated engineer to the police officer/firefighter to the old farmers, add a Jewish DIL on Elery's side plus his family from Tennessee and we've got a bit of everything. (grin) OK, the butterlake rolls recipe, easy as can be. Even San made a batch a few years ago and was successful and she told me she did NOT bake bread. Ever. This halves easily, I just use a whole egg, I don't try to halve it and I use all butter, no shortening. Butterflake Rolls 2 packages active dry yeast 2 cups warm water 1/2 cup sugar 2 tsp salt 6 to 6 1/2 cups flour 1 egg 1/2 cup shortening (use butter) 1/2 cup butter, softened. In mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar, salt and 2 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add egg and shortening, mix well, stir in enough flour to form a soft dough. Do not knead. Cover and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, punch dough down and divide into 4 portions. Roll each portion into a 14 x 12 inch rectangle, spread 2 tbls butter over dough. Fold in half lengthwise and cut into 12 strips. Tie each strip into a knot, tuck and pinch ends under. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Yield: 4 dozen And congratuations on the "grown up" dinner, it sounds perfect to me. Annie

Here's the recipe I had: Pull Apart Bacon Bread Time 15-20 minutes Serves 8 Ingredients 12 slices of Bacon, diced 1 (1 lb) loaf frozen bread dough, thawed 2 Tbsp. olive or vegetable oil, divided 1 cup (4 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese 1 (1 oz) envelope Ranch salad dressing mix How to make it In a skillet, cook bacon over medium heat for 5 minutes or until partially cooked. Drain on paper towels. Roll dough out to 1/2 inch thickness and brush with 1 tablespoon oil. Cut into 1 -inch pieces; place in a large bowl. Add the bacon, cheese, dressing mix and remaining oil. Toss to coat. Arrange pieces in a 9 x5 inch square on a greased baking sheet, layering as needed. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cover with foil and bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until golden brown. *** Sharon, my sincerest condolences on your loss.

o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by walnutcreek (My Page) on Sun, Feb 12, 12 at 16:05 CHICKEN IN HEAVENLY WINE SAUCE 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon crushed dry oregano 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 1/4 cup butter 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil 8 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms 1 cup Marsala wine 1/2 cup sherry wine Clean and rinse chicken, place between sheets of plastic wrap and using the side of a square mallet pound chicken breast to 1/4 inch thickness. In a shallow dish or bowl, mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and oregano. Coat chicken pieces with the flour mixture. In a large skillet, melt butter in the oil over medium heat. Place chicken in the pan and lightly brown, then turn over chicken pieces and add mushrooms and any remaining flour mixture. Pour in wine and sherry. Cover Skillet and bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer,and cook for 10 minutes, turning chicken once, cook until no longer pink. Serve over egg noodles or your favorite pasta, topped with the wine sauce. Serves 4 SPICY WINE MUSTARD 3/4 cup brown mustard seeds 3/4 cup yellow mustard seeds 1 cup white wine vinegar 1 cup dry white wine 1/4 cup EVOO 1/4 cup sugar 2 tablespoons dry mustard (Coleman's) 1 tablespoon sea salt 1 - 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Put all ingredients into a deep, medium-sized bowl, stir well, cover and leave on countertop at room temperature, stirring once or twice, for 24 hours. Transfer bowl contents to a food processor puree until creamy. Transfer mustard to jars, seal tightly and refrigerate. Makes about 3 cups. APPLE, CHICKEN, AND WINE 1 whole fryer chicken 1 whole apple 1 cup apple juice or 1 cup white wine Salt and pepper Sprinkle salt and pepper all over the inside of the chicken. Put the whole apple inside the chicken cavity. Place chicken breast side down in a crock pot. Pour apple juice or wine around the chicken. Cook on low 4-6 hours. SHALLOT AND WINE BUTTER 1 shallot, finely chopped 3/4 cup dry red wine 4 oz butter cut into small pieces Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste Bring the shallots and wine to a boil in a small saucepan over moderate heat. Boil until all the wine has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter, salt, and pepper until the mixture is smooth except for the pieces of shallot. Refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. To serve with steak, top each steak with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the butter. BLACKBERRY WINE CAKE 1 Duncan Hines white cake mix 1 3-oz. box blackberry Jell-O 1/2 cup salad oil 4 eggs 1 cup blackberry wine 1/2 cup chopped pecans Preheat oven 325 degrees. Combine all ingredients except pecans. Mix on low speed until moistened then on high for 2 minutes. Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Sprinkle pecans on bottom and side of pan. Spoon batter to cover pecans. Bake 1 hour. GLAZE: 2/3 stick butter 1/2 c. blackberry wine 1 1/4 c. powdered sugar Combine butter, sugar, and wine, bring to boil. Punch holes in cake with ice pick and pour half of glaze over cake while in pan. Let stand 30 minutes. Turn out and pour glaze over cake. PARMESAN WINE RICE 1 tablespoon butter 1 medium onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 1 cup chicken broth 1 cup uncooked rice 1 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup grated Parmesan Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook 8 minutes or until translucent. Stir in broth, rice and wine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook 25 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Stir in grated Parmesan and serve warm. Serves 4 o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by wizardnm (My Page) on Mon, Feb 13, 12 at 10:28 A big Thank You to all that participated in this thread, there are some really good recipes here. I just pulled a name for the next Cookalong. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ bbstx ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Please choose the next focus ingredient. Try to pick something you have a special interest in. If it happens to be something that has been covered in the older Cookalongs, that's fine, especially if it is basic. All the older Cookalong threads are in the FAQ. Think about Seasonal, Fresh, Basic, and Readily available ingredients.... If you have questions, you can email me through GW. I will check back here and then set up the new Cookalong. Nancy o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by foodonastump (My Page) on Mon, Feb 13, 12 at 12:51 A little late, but I think worth mentioning here. I had been meaning to try this since I first chose wine for the cookalong. Recent conversations about mussels and fennel finally got me to do it today for lunch. I winged it but here's approximately what I did: Saute about 3/4 cup small-diced fennel and a minced shallot in butter with a pinch of salt. Add some thyme, a pinch of saffron, and 1.5 cups or so wine. (I used Gewuertztraminer, as recommended in Patricia Wells' "The Paris Cookbook" for its slightly sweet note.) Reduce wine by half and add scrubbed mussels. Steam for about 3 minutes or until they open. If some open earlier than others remove them so they don't overcook. Once all the mussels are done, remove them from the pan and add a dollop or two of creme fraiche to the broth. Adjust seasoning to taste. I think that's about all I did. I ended up eating the full 2.5 pound bag, plus half a baguette to sop up the sauce. It was awesome! o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by wizardnm (My Page) on Mon, Feb 13, 12 at 15:42 The next topic is #41 - Greens - Cooked and Raw Here is a link Here is a link that might be useful: Cookalong #41 Greens, Cooked and Raw o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by sally2 (My Page) on Sun, Feb 19, 12 at 8:19 I'm reporting back way late on my cooking with wine attempt. I made Ruthanna's French Bean Soup, and know it would have been wonderful if......I didn't burn it. Yes, I actually managed to burn soup. We were up in Oklahoma where I have a substandard set of pots and pans, basically camping gear, cause I don't want to spend a lot of money on another set of pots and pans. Anyway, the soup pot I used is very thin aluminum. It was already cooked earlier in the day, and tasting delicious. DH had to go on an errand, and while he was gone, I turned the soup back on to heat up for dinner, and sat down with my cross stitch. Big mistake. When DH got home, he headed for the kitchen,stirred the soup, and announced, "Did you know the soup is burning?" Aaahg! Oh, well, it was still edible, and I'll definitely make it again, but I was very disappointed that I did something so stupid. Ruthanna, I think I'm drawn to your recipes. I'm sure I've made more than one other of your recipes. If you had a cookbook, I'd probably buy it. I do have one question about the recipe. In the last part of the instructions you say to remove the cinnamon sticks, but there are no cinnamon sticks mentioned anywhere else in the recipe. I didn't have any, so I added a dash of cinnamon to the soup. Sally o RE: Cookalong #40 - Wine clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings Posted by lakeguy35 (My Page) on Fri, Feb 24, 12 at 0:53 I'm late checking back here too...I did make the dessert that Lindac posted. Oh man was it good!! My group loved it. Photobucket I have my eye on several recipes posted here that's for sure. Glad to see the cookalongs back in action. David