I know many a home cook who begins dinner with an onion. We figure out the rest as we chop, slice, mince or dice.
When it's hot in Georgia, this cook reaches for Vidalia onions, Georgia's pride and joy root vegetable. It shines in many a kitchen project (raise your hand if you have something pickling with Vidalia onions right now), but none so much as an onion pie.
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Open your pantry and your fridge. Everything you need to make this savory onion pie is probably on hand already. The minimalist aspect is what I adore about this recipe, and many others published in the recently released “The Folk School Cookbook,” the newest cookery tome from the John C. Campbell Folk School in the mountains of Brasstown, North Carolina, some two hours north of Atlanta.
This recipe is so simple that I have but a few pointers for the home cook.
First, the crust: With this recipe, the crust matters less than the filling. So prepare your favorite scratch pie crust or be content with a store-bought version.
Second, the filling in this pie can be one or two layers. I like the interior look of double layers: caramelized onion and bacon on the bottom; white custard on top. If you want to mix onions, bacon and all the wet ingredients, go for it.
Just don't miss out on Vidalia onions. They will be gone before you know it.
And a note from Nanette Davidson, culinary director at the Campbell Folk School since 1998: “This pie is also delicious with the addition of 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese added in either layer.”
No matter how you stir in the ingredients, this pie lives up to its name.
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Recipe adapted from “The Folk School Cookbook: A Collection of Seasonal Favorites from John C. Campbell Folk School” by Nanette Davidson.
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