Tarte a l'oignon (French Onion Pie)
This rich pie pairs bacon and caramelized onions in a creamy sauce baked in a pastry shell. Serve with a tossed salad for lunch or a light dinner.
Yield
8 servingsPrep
40 minCook
30 minReady
70 minIngredients
| Amount | Measure | Ingredient | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | slices |
bacon
low sodium, cut into 1" pieces |
|
| 4 | medium |
sweet vidalia onions
thinly sliced |
|
| 1 | teaspoon |
salt
|
|
| ¼ | teaspoon |
black pepper
freshly ground |
|
| 2 | teaspoons |
brown sugar
light or dark |
|
| 1 | splash |
balsamic vinegar
preferably aged |
*
|
| ¾ | cup |
light cream (half&half)
or light cream |
|
| 1 | tablespoon |
unbleached all-purpose flour
or regular |
|
| 4 | large |
eggs
or 3 jumbo eggs |
|
| 1 | pinch |
nutmeg
ground |
*
|
| 1 | x |
pie shell (9 inch)
unbaked |
|
Ingredients
| Amount | Measure | Ingredient | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | slices |
bacon
low sodium, cut into 1" pieces |
|
| 4 | medium |
sweet vidalia onions
thinly sliced |
|
| 5 | ml |
salt
|
|
| 1.3 | ml |
black pepper
freshly ground |
|
| 1E+1 | ml |
brown sugar
light or dark |
|
| 1 | splash |
balsamic vinegar
preferably aged |
*
|
| 177 | ml |
light cream (half&half)
or light cream |
|
| 15 | ml |
unbleached all-purpose flour
or regular |
|
| 4 | large |
eggs
or 3 jumbo eggs |
|
| 1 | pinch |
nutmeg
ground |
*
|
| 1 | x |
pie shell (9 inch)
unbaked |
|
Directions
Preheat oven to 400℉ (200℃).
Brown bacon pieces in skillet over medium heat. Remove from skillet, reserving 4 tablespoons of fat in the skillet, and drain on paper towels; reserve bacon pieces.
Place the sliced onions in the same skillet with the reserved fat and cook over medium to medium-high heat until evenly browned, about 15 minutes. Season with the salt, pepper, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir to blend and cook flour, about 2 minutes. Stir in the half and half. Cook, stirring, over medium heat until the mixture thickens.
Remove from heat and stir in the reserved bacon pieces. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, beat eggs until frothy and light yellow, about 3 minutes. Stir in the onion mixture, ONE SPOONFUL AT A TIME, mixing well, until all the onion mixture has been stirred into the eggs and all is thoroughly blended.
Pour mixture into unbaked pie shell; sprinkle with the nutmeg.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until set and nicely browned. Remove from oven and cool on rack at least 5 minutes before serving.
NOTE: I have added a lattice top made with previously leftover dough scraps. I egg washed them and sprinkled with coarse salt before baking the pie. This is purely optional.
