French Onion Tart! Mmm, oniony. If you can't eat onions don't make this.

Over the recent eat-birds-and-bread holiday I put this together on a whim. Sometimes the Yeti food experiments work, and sometimes they don't. This one worked out really well. I found that the mixture of thyme and the carmelization of the onions and the shredded gruyere really recreated the taste of French onion soup. You want to leave the onion skin where noted to keep the onions from drying out in the oven. The skins are really easy to remove later. Just don't burn your fingers. Remember, abominable snowdogs shouldn't eat onion, it's not good for them.

Onion Tart with gruyere

3 tablespoons butter
1 large sprig thyme or 1 teaspoon dry thyme
2 tablespoons sugar
3 onions, medium sized, tips and root removed, skin left on and cut in half widthwise
1 pre-made pie crust, home made or store bought
About 4 ounces gruyere, shredded
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a 12-inch saute pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter with the thyme and sugar. Crowd the onions into the pan, center cuts down and skins on. Allow the onions to caramelize in the pan over medium heat, approximately 5 to10 minutes. Place the pan in the oven and cook until the onions are fork tender, approximately 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly, approximately 15 minutes. Remove the tough, outside onion skins without disturbing the onions.

Put about 1/3 of the shredded cheese in the bottom of the pre-made pie crust. Carefully add the onions, preferably cut side up, into the pie crust. Sprinkle the onions with a small pinch of salt, the rest of the gruyere, and a few grinds of pepper. Bake approximately 25 to 30 minutes or until the pie crust is golden brown and fully cooked. Remove the tart from the oven and allow it to cool to just warm. Cut into 6 pieces and serve alongside a green salad.

Serves 1 hungry Yeti, or 2 Yeti as a side dish, or 4 people.