SippitySup

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a large heavy saucepan heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and salt, then turn the heat down to medium. Stir to get the onions well coated in the oil. Sweat onions, covered for 10 minutes. Stirring from time to time to prevent sticking. They should be well-softened and translucent.

Add the sun-dried tomato pieces and stir to incorporate. Cook another 1 or 2 minutes to combine the flavors.

Turn the heat to low. Add the cinnamon sticks, anise seeds, ginger, orange peel, garlic, ground cumin, orange juice, honey and cayenne. Simmer the mixture, stirring often for about 1 hour. You may need to add a bit of water from time to time to keep the pan from drying out.

When finished taste for seasoning. It may need more salt and some white pepper or a dash of red wine vinegar. Remove the confit from the heat and let come to room temperature. It may be stored in the refrigerator up to 5 days and brought back to room temperature before serving as well.

Wrap each of the rutabagas separately in foil. Place them on the center rack of a preheated oven. Bake at 375 degrees F for 1 hr 45 minutes or until a knife is easily inserted all the way to the rutabagas with very little resistance.

To serve split each rutabaga, baked potato style; using a fork to fluff up the meat of the vegetable. Give each one a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and white pepper and top them with some of the onion confit. Garnish with chives and serve warm.