Saveur Has Me Thinking About Thanksgiving...

When my Saveur magazine arrived in the mail earlier this week, I had to steal away from the work at hand for a quick look. I love how Saveur dishes up both a global perspective and at the same time a personal look at what people are eating and how they are cooking. And, of course, there are those magnificent photos.

I savor the double page spread of a Thanksgiving dinner held at a home in Oaxaca, Mexico, with turkey and stuffing surrounded by potluck contributions: a creamy squash vine soup, guacamole, corn bread, green salad, giant white corn tortillas, jello molds, and more. The table too is surrounded, but with hungry guests, plates in hand, and it positively groans under the weight of those heavy platters.

In another article of a New England Thanksgiving, my eye is drawn to a large platter of creamed onions. They turn out to be swathed in a curried cream. It's the signature dish of one Anna North Coit, a 101-year-old Connecticut Yankee who has been cooking this particular recipe for some thirty years.

Halloween is not yet here, but Saveur has me thinking of Thanksgiving dinner and all its possibilities.

Curried Creamed Onions

Ingredients:
Kosher salt, to taste
2 pounds white pearl onions, unpeeled
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/8 teaspoon Tabasco
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Bring a 6-quart pot of salted water to a boil. Add onions and cook until just tender, about 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer onions to bowl. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking liquid. Using a pairing knife, peel onions and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and curry powder and cook, stirring frequently, until golden and thick, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the half-and-half, the reserved cooking liquid, and mustard and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium low and cook, stirring occasionally,until sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes. Add onions and season with Tabasco and salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften a little and the flavors meld, about 10 more minutes. Transfer onions to a platter or a bowl with a slotted spoon and pour some of the cream sauce over them.

Serves 4-6.

"Yankee Pride," Sandra L. Oliver,  Saveur, No. 124, November 2009

--Tracy Schneider