I promise to eventually stop with the Jamie Oliver recipes. When I get a new cookbook and I like it, I tend to cook my way through it pretty fast before I get sick of it and never want to look at it again. In the meantime, red onion gratin.

This looks better than it was. I mean, of course it was good to eat, but it wasn’t worth having the oven on for two hours. Let me clarify: it’s not worth having the oven on for two hours if it’s the only thing in the oven. I happened to have a few sweet potatoes roasting with a mess of garlic cloves at the same time, so we ended up with a delicious dinner. It’s a great side dish, but I wouldn’t serve it as a main course (and yes, I frequently serve vegetable dishes like this as main courses on weeknights—with a bit of bread and some wine, I am satisfied).

Jamie calls this one the best onion gratin. He also says that “it’s got ballsy flavor and sweetness.” Does ballsy mean something different in England? How did that one slip past the copy editor? When did such profanity become acceptable in cookbooks?

• 4 medium red onions, peeled, quartered, and separated
• Olive oil
• Fresh thyme, leaves picked
• A few garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup of white wine
• 4 tablespoons crème fraîche
• 1.75 ounces gruyère, grated
• 1.75 ounces parmesan, grated

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Toss the onions in a bowl with the olive oil, thyme, and garlic. Season well, and pour into a baking dish (such as a 9″ × 13″ Pyrex). Pour in the wine, and cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake 45 minutes, remove the foil, and bake 15 more minutes. Turn the oven down to 350ºF. Stir in the crème fraîche, sprinkle on the cheese, and return to the oven until it all looks browned and beautiful.