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Onion Sandwich
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- Total Time
- 20 minutes, plus chilling
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- 1loaf challah or brioche, sliced about ¼-inch thick
- ½cup mayonnaise
- 1 to 2sweet white onions, such as Vidalia
- Crunchy sea salt, to taste
- 1cup fresh herbs, such as parsley, or a mix of parsley, tarragon and marjoram, chopped
Preparation
- Step 1
Using a 1½-inch cutter, cut 24 rounds from the bread and arrange in 12 pairs. Spread each round with mayonnaise.
- Step 2
Slice the onions through the equator, evenly and thinly, and put a slice that fits the bread on half the bread rounds. Salt lightly, then cover with a second round of bread.
- Step 3
When sandwiches are assembled, spread remaining mayonnaise on a piece of parchment paper, and have the chopped herbs ready in a bowl.
- Step 4
Hold a sandwich, and roll the edge in mayonnaise, then in the chopped herbs, covering the edge. Cover and chill for about 1 hour and up to 6 hours before serving.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
Since I was a child, my late mother served these. I have always loved them. Her version which she ascribed to Mr Beard used unsalted butter in lieu of mayonnaise. I much prefer these buttered.
Duke's Mayonnaise is my choice.. tangy and sharply textured... If you're a Yankee, you've probably never had Duke's... But down in Charleston, SC- where I cooked professionally for a few years, it's indispensible.
Mayonnaise? Brioche? Parsley? Heaven to Betsy. "Mr. Ray's opinion of sandwiches without crusts matched Mrs. Ray's opinion of tea on Sunday nights...The butter had been put to soften, and...if nothing else was available he made his sandwiches of onions. He used slices of mild Bermuda onions, sprinkled with vinegar and dusted with pepper and salt."
I've been making a variation of this recipe for decades, based on Graham Kerr's recipe, using dark rye/pumpernickle bread with sweet onions & mayo.
25 years ago we were told to make these with Pepperidge Farm thin white bread...now it's challah or brioche. Recipe evolution!
My mom had a different spin. 8oz cream cheese, tablespoon of mayonnaise (H'man's), one huge grated onion, dash of lemon. Four ingredients and simplicity beyond compare. Uae as a dip/spread or in tea sandwiches.
Do they mean a 2.5" cutter? A 1.5" sandwich is not pictured, not in most standard sets of circular cutters, and would be too small for most onion slices.
If no Vidalia in house use red onions or white, but soak for 5 minutes in cold water to do away with the sting of raw onions, but not the deliciously bad breath
I agree with notlikely! Butter, not mayo. Though I love mayo. And - we’re from the Northwest, so Walla Walla sweet onions, please. Expatriate serves a delicious version of these, and I hope to god they are able to reopen soon so that I can have one with a Pegu Club, even if it’s past the season for watermelon salad. Another amazing James Beard recipe appeared in the Oregonian in the late 1970’s or early ‘80’s. Chocolate orange ice cream. It was amazing!
Mine are quite different. Take one slice of bread. Butter half of it. Favorite mustard swished on the other half--currently using horseradish mustard. Put two thin onion slices on the buttered half, sprinkle with salt and coarse ground pepper, fold and bite. Yum!
Our version used cottage cheese instead of mayonnaise. One of my comfort foods.
Helman's Mayo tastes better than Duke's, IMHO. Duke's tastes bland and lacks the acidity of Helman's.
I have never made these - the parsley on the outside rim looks inviting ( I guess ), but it also looks like it might turn out messy while eating, with parsley falling all over the place. One Beard hors d’oeuvre recipe that I think is wonderful has some similarities....little sandwiches of dark rye with a generous filling of sweet butter and thinly sliced radishes. It's better to assemble them close to serving time, and the radishes must be super fresh.
I make these every year with a thin slice of leftover Thanksgiving turkey and unsalted butter. Perhaps I'm just making a turkey sandwich but the origin is definitely Beard's onion sandwich.
WHen I was first married, in the early 1960s, I made these sandwiches (without the parsley, squares rather than circles, butter rather than mayo) for every picnic, every road trip my husband and I made. I learned to cook from James Beard as much as from Julia Child, not to mention Elsie Masterton (Blueberry Hill), Peg Bracken (I Hate to Cook Book) and other popular cooks of the time.
I used toasted sesame seed mayo with a dab of harissa on the inside and kewpie Mayo on the outside rim to roll a combo of chopped parsley and cilantro, my onion was a lightly pickled red onion. Delicious. On one of the sandwiches I cut out a circular piece of deli ham to lay on the onion just to try it, it was tasty but unnecessary.
Once when I was famished while visiting a boyfriend in college, I availed myself of the only ingredients lying around -- an onion, bread and a jar of mayo in the fridge. The sandwich was a revelation, and delicious, but it made my eyes water. Like the historical multi-place invention of iron smelting technology, if humans are given the same things no matter where they are, they will arrive at similar results.
My mother always made these for Christmas, but added a thin slice of tomato with salt on top. The red, white and green was very festive, and they were absolutely delicious.
You forgot the peanut butter! Oh, sorry, that was Hemingway's.
I toasted mine in the toaster over, and they rocked. Put a thin spread of veganaise over the tops to brown. Bueno!!
I do not disagree with anything here, it makes a fine onion sandwich. But I do like to make mine a little differently. First, thin slice (1/8 inch) the Vidalia onion and toss them with a bit of kosher salt, and toss them in a colander which you prep everything else. Then get some quality sourdough bread, or bake it yourself. Apply a layer of room temp butter (not too think, just enough to coat the bread. Add everything bagel seasoning, the onions and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc on the side.
To whoever posted about Duke's mayo and all who read it: You will never get better mayo than Duke's. You can order it on Amazon. The difference it makes in almost anything calling for mayonnaise is astounding. My last secreted-away plastic bottle was nabbed by Atlanta airport security. BUMMER! Now I have to order it. DO IT! (Good tip: If you happen to have an Asian community near you, look for"Kewpie" brand mayo--it's in a plastic squeeze bottle. Also out of this world!)
Love this sandwich however I prefer butter my family Hellman’s Mayo
How many does it serve?
12 sandwiches, each 1 1/2" across. As an appetizer, 4-6 people I would think.
Vidalia onion, white bread, and butter. Can't go wrong.
Fantastic. I love tarragon
How thick or thin should I slice the pizza onions?
try pumpernickel or rye bread
Surprisingly delicious.
If you need many of these for a tea party, there is a streamlined technique that is less messy and faster. Have your bakery slice a Pullman loaf lengthwise. Spread two slices generously with mayo, then add the thin sliced sweet onions, salt and pepper. Add the top, press gently, and use a 1.5' cutter to cut into rounds. Stack 4 or 5 sandwiches, and holding the stack between your thumb and forefinger, spread the edges with a thin layer of mayo and roll in the herbs. Layer between wax paper.
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