Did you know that onions are one of the world’s oldest foods to date? They have been used for thousands upon thousands of years and were even worshipped and used at burial grounds in ancient Egypt. Onions are also known for a lot more than just making you cry when you cut them. A healthy addition of onions to your diet can include:

• Cancer fighting benefits: this includes cancer of the colon, prostate, esophagus, and stomach
• Minimizes depression
• Improves sleep
• Improves and normalizes appetite
• Strengthens hair and skin
• Helps prevent diabetes
• Helps prevent heart disease
• Helps prevent obesity
• Helps prevent tooth decay

Just call onions the miracle food! Great in a myriad of savoury dishes, we decided to handpick a couple of recipes in which one dish revolves around onions themselves (if you’re a big fan of this allium vegetable) and one that does a good job of sneaking onions in (for those that need a little more convincing to add more onions to their diet). FRENCH ONION SOUP RECIPE: A classic, you cannot go wrong with! This cozy soup makes the onion it’s star. It can be found at most restaurants made with little twists here and there. Make it healthier by using little to no cheese. MAKES: 4-6 servings. PREP TIME: 10 mins. COOK TIME: 5 mins. Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp Grapeseed oil
• 2 cups of thinly sliced sweet onions
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• Salt
• Pepper
• OPTIONAL: grated Gruyere cheese

Directions:

1. Slice your onions using a nice sharp knife to chop your onions with ease, OR,  as an even bigger time saver, chop your onions roughly and throw them into a Vitamix blender then simply select the “chop” setting.
2. Heat the oil in large pot Le Creuset Stock Pot  and cook the onions until soft. This should take about 3-5 minutes.
3. Add your vegetable broth, salt and pepper to taste. Stir until thoroughly warmed.
4. Optional - sprinkle some grated Gruyere cheese on top. It will melt, instantly!
5. Presto!  You are done!

BONUS RECOMMENDATION: Serve with a plateful of crusty bread such as warm baguettes, ciabatta, or even Hawaiian rolls. Simply heat them up in an oven set to 450°F for 5 minutes and you’ve got yourself a restaurant grade meal!

Recipe by:  Brooke McLay

WEEKNIGHT VEGGIE BURGERS RECIPE: This veggie burger recipe is simple and fast that sneaks onions into the patties without you even knowing it. If you’re not big on the onions (cooked or raw) they make great unnoticeable addition to most, if not all, savoury recipes-- always promising to boost the flavour. MAKES: 6 servings. PREP TIME: 10 mins. COOK TIME: 15 mins. Ingredients:

• 1 ½ 15 oz. cans of navy beans
• ⅓ cup finely chopped onion
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons of your favorite bar-b-que sauce
• 1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tsp olive oil
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground pepper
• ⅓ cup cornstarch
• ½ cup dried breadcrumbs
• Ciabatta burger buns (slicing ciabatta rolls should do the trick!

Directions:

1. Rinse your navy beans using a mesh strainer and then dry them with a dry towel.
2. Add navy beans, onions, garlic, egg, bar-b-que sauce, soy sauce, olive oil, salt and pepper into a blender or food processor.  Blend until the beans are about dime-sized.
3. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add cornstarch and breadcrumbs and mix thouroughly.
4. Divide mixture into six sections. Dust your hands with cornstarch and mold into 6 separate patties.
5. Grease a frying pan and heat over medium to high heat.  Add burgers 1-2 at a time and cook on each side for about 2-3 minutes.
6. On a neighbouring stove top, heat frying pan.  Slice your ciabatta rolls in half and and brush with oil.  Allow to toast for about 1-2 minutes on each side.
7. To assemble the burgers: Place patty on base of the ciabatta roll or burger bun. Add a fresh slather of bar-b-que sauce. Add other toppings like more onions, tomato, fresh kale, and cucumber. And, always make sure to serve ‘em while they’re  hot!

CHEESE RECOMMENDATION: If you want to melt cheese onto your veggie burger patties, simply lay a slice of your favourite cheese on top when the second side of the veggie burger patty is being cooked in the pan.

Recipe by: Dreamer in Ontario