Glass Onion Recipes Available In New Cookbook

In the South just about everybody's grandmother has a special recipe for any number of classic Southern dishes. The owners and chefs at are no different, and they've included many of those recipies on their menu for years.

Now they are sharing a lot of those same family recipies in the new Glass Onion Classics cookbook. Written and conceived by pastry chef and co-owner Sarah O'Kelley, Glass Onion Classics is a labor of love that O'Kelley has wanted to write since moving to Charleston and opening her own restuarant.

Together with chef and co-owner Chris Stewart, the pair has put together a list of 49 of the restaurant's recipies, including signature dishes like Jenie Ruth's Deviled Eggs, named after Stewart's grandmother whose traditional recipe provided the starting point for the dish, and the Country Captain based on a recipe from O'Kelley's great-grandmother.

"The things in the cookbook are simple items that you can do at home," O'Kelley said. "Some stuff we do in the restaurant is really complicated and time consuming, stuff that you wouldn't want to do at home like curing and braising your own pork belly."

Starting with the basics like making a good chicken stock and hitting all the high points of a meal from salads and apetizers to entrees and sides and on to desserts, the cookbook walks readers through the process of creating great southern style meals. And it's here in time for the holidays if anyone wants a unique gift for someone uniquely talented in the kitchen.

"This is the food we grew up eating and that influenced our lives," O'Kelley said.

The cookbook also includes profiles of many of the area farmers O'Kelley and Stewart buy meat and produce from for the restaurant. O'Kelley said knowing where the food originates helps people make a deper connection with the things they eat and the environment in general.

The Glass Onion has built a reputation for good food in an unpretentious atmosphere, and O'Kelley said that is no accident.

"When I first moved here you were either going fine dining or you were going out for a burger in a bar," she said. "We wanted a neighborhood-type establishment where you can bring your family and give people chance to experience it."

O'Kelley spent about a year working on the cookbook, from writing and testing the recipies to profiling the farmers to producing the finished manuscript. She gives a lot of credit for the work to her staff at the Glass Onion who allowed her to spend so much time on it. One of the managers at the restaurant, Zachary Trefsger drew all of the illustrations in the book.

"In the beginning we were so bare bones," O'Kelley said. "I was the front-of-the-house manager and the baker and we were all wearing so many hats. Finally we had enough business to hire two great front-of-the-house managers and I could work on the book and expanding our desserts."

The cookbooks are available now for $16.50 at the Glass Onion, Heirloom Book Company, , the Coastal Cupboard and Charleston Cooks.

West Ashley Patch is including one recipe from the Glass Onion Classics cookbook with permission from author Sarah O'Kelley. Purchase a copy at one of the establishments listed above to see the rest.

Jenie Ruth's Deviled Eggs

6 large eggs

2 1/2 tablespoons Thunder Sauce, or sweet pickle relish

1 tablespoon mayonaise

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

1 1/2 teaspoons hot sauce

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add eggs; boil for 14 minutes. Have a bowl of ice water ready. Transfer eggs to this ice bath. Once cool, remove from water and peel. Slice eggs in half lengthwise and carefully remove the yolks. Add the yolks, Thunder Sauce (or pickle relish), mayonaise, yellow mustard, and hot sauce to the bowl of a blender or food processor; run until smooth. Alternatively, combine these ingredients in a medium bowl and work together using a fork until relaively smooth. Spoon into the whites.

Yield: 12 deviled eggs