Scalloped Vidalia Onions
Beans, Greens & Sweet Georgia Peaches
Scalloped Vidalia Onions
Beans, Greens & Sweet Georgia Peaches
|
6 medium Vidalia or other sweet onions (about 3 pounds) 1 cup soft bread crumbs salt and whole white peppercorns in a peppermill nutmeg in a grater 2 cups heavy cream (minimum 36% milkfat) 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 cup dry bread crumbs 1 cup toasted pecans, cut into slivers. Toasted Pecans: 1 pound whole pecan halves 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (no substitutes) salt Directions: Toasted Pecans: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 275°F. Spread the pecans on a wide, deep rimmed pan. Roast them in the center of the oven, stirring occasionally until they begin to color, about 45 minutes to an hour. The nuts will continue to darken and crisp as they cool, so don't let them get too dark. Cut the butter in bits, and add it to the pecans. Stir until it has just melted and the nuts are evenly coated. Return them to the oven and toast for about 10 minutes more. Salt the pecans to taste while they are still hot and toss them until they are uniformly coated. Allow the pecans to cool completely. Serve extra toasted pecans as a snack. Scalloped Onions: Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut off the root and stem ends of the onions, peel them, and cut them crosswise into 1/4 inch rounds. Lightly butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle the bottom lightly with soft bread crumbs. Place a row of onion rounds at one end of the dish, sprinkle more soft crumbs over them, and season them lightly with a sprinkling of salt. Add another row of onion rounds, overlapping the first one. Sprinkle this row with more soft crumbs and a bit of salt, and continue until all the onions are in the dish in one layer of overlapping rows. Sprinkle with a few generous grindings of white pepper and gratings of nutmeg, and pour the cream evenly over all. Put the butter in a skillet and turn on the heat to medium. When it is just melted, turn off the heat and add the dry bread crumbs and pecans. Stir until the butter is evenly absorbed, and then spread the crumbs and pecans over the onions. Bake in the upper third of the oven until the onions are tender, the juices thick, and the crumbs nicely browned, about 1 hour. Makes 6 to 8 servings.
|