Books are like onions… and I’m okay with that.

Sometimes they really stink. Other times they make you cry. But when picked through their many layers and left to marinate in your brain (or in the case of this recipe, some dark ale), they can be pretty sweet.

Welcome to my blog! The Baker In The Rye is a delicious unity of the two things that really bring people together, a good book and some great food. All my recipes are inspired by books, but as a tribute to the many sweet and spicy writings out there, I created these Drunk Texan Onion Rings. They’re super crunchy and the recipe can be adjusted to fit your preferred level of heat, as well as nutrition since these onion rings can be baked as an alternative to fried, or marinated in buttermilk instead of beer. Though if you want my opinion, and you can skip right over this sentence if you don’t, everything- EVERYTHING- is better soaked in beer and fried.

Drunk Texan Onion Rings

Ingredients:

4 Medium-large onions

2 Bottles of any dark ale

3 Cups buttermilk

2 Cups flour

1 Teaspoon salt

1/2 Teaspoon black pepper

2 Teaspoons cayenne pepper

1 Teaspoon paprika

2 Teaspoons chile powder

2 Teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

4 Eggs

6 Cups Vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Chop onions into thick slices. In a large bowl, marinate onions with beer for a minimum of 2 hours and up to 24 hours. Then, remove onions from liquid.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, and chile powder.
3. In a large bowl, pour buttermilk and add in the onions. Let sit for 10 minutes.
4. Beat eggs in a small bowl.
5. Begin to set up your frying station by heating oil between 350- 375 degrees fahrenheit. Then, line up your bowls of onions soaked in buttermilk, spiced flour, and eggs.
6. Take an onion ring and shake off excess buttermilk. Dip it into the flour mixture, then into the egg, and then back into the flour mixture, shaking off any excess flour or egg. Place the onion rings into the oil until golden brown. *** To minimize the mess- and I know when my parents read this they will heavily disagree that I minimize any mess- but to minimize the mess, create a drying station by laying a large paper bag down flat and placing two layers of paper towels on top. Cardboard will work as well. Place the fried onion rings on top so any lingering oil is soaked up.
7. Repeat until all your onions are golden, crispy, and delicious.