Balsamic Caramelized Red Onions

In a recent blog entry I mentioned that my cousin and her son were coming over for dinner. They are vegetarian and I wanted to make a meal where there was no meat in sight, but it was also a fun meal. I made white pizza (pizza with whole wheat crust, Alfredo sauce in the place of a red sauce and mozzarella cheese). It is a hit every single time. When I take the extras to a bike race and the kids find out I have it I am swarmed by hands seeking a slice. I wanted to add a bit of pizazz for the adults so I offered marinated artichoke hearts, hearts of palm and balsamic caramelized red onions as toppers. In the end we ate the separate from the pizza and loved it. I made the onion recipe up. The photo here does not look as inviting as I had hoped. In person they were lovely. The photo is of the cooking midway. By the time they were done they were quite dark. Here's how to do it:

Balsamic Caramelized Red Onions

2-3 Red Onions, cut into large sections (I cut mine into 8 pieces)
4-5 TBL. Olive Oil
2 TBL Butter
6+ TBL Balsamic Vinegar*

While your pan heats up on medium high add the olive oil and butter. Once it is hot add in the onions. Stir to coat. Saute onions as you normally would. Once the onions are wilted add in the balsamic vinegar. Adding it in too soon will result in it baking off. Stir occasionally. The Olive Oil, butter and vinegar mix will begin to thicken and coat the onions. Remove when the onions become a golden brown. Add more balsamic vinegar, if needed. Be careful not to drown the onions, but only coat them lightly. They may be served warm or at room temperature.

They are nice as side dish, on crackers, on pizza, etc.
*The Balsamic vinegar I used is called Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar with Lemon by Jane from Tulocay's Napa Valley. It is wonderful stuff all by itself. As a way to wrap things up we dipped the crusts in small bits of flavored vinegars - sounds weird, but it is wonderful!