Bacon and Onion Jam

This weekend I went to visit friends in the Blue Mountains. We thought of having a picnic and therefore I made this bacon and onion jam. I got inspired by a fellow blogger here and only changed a few things. I used rosemary and it totally works its magic with the smoky flavour of the bacon and the sweetness of the onions - it's absolutely beautiful. We didn't end up having a picnic due to the weather but nevertheless enjoyed the jam on linseed bread and homemade scones with goat's cheese - a darn good combination. My friend's son really loved it too and had the leftover jam the next day the Italian way with some pasta mixed through it. My daughter, as always, didn't like it and only had scones with nothing, well why not.

Recipe:
Makes about 4 cups

4 rashers bacon
1 kg brown onions, peeled, halved and cut into slices
1 teaspoon salt
500 ml apple cider
50 ml red wine or cider vinegar
40 g brown sugar
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary


1. Heat a large heavy sauce pan over medium-high heat. Cook the bacon until it is just crisp, then remove the slices and set aside, leaving all of the rendered fat in the pan.
2. Add the onions and salt to the pan, reduce the heat to medium and cook until the onions soften (about 15 minutes).
3. Chop the bacon into small dice. Add bacon and the remaining ingredients to the pan. Cook uncovered until the liquid is reduced to almost nothing, stirring occasionally (about an hour).
4. Reduce the heat to low and continue cooking until the onions are a rich medium brown color, stirring frequently (about 10 minutes). If it starts looking too dry, add water 1/4 cup at a time.
5. Remove from the heat, set aside, and let cool.