Roasted "Chrysanthemum" Onions, Chorizo Cornbread Stuffing, and Our Thanksgiving Menu

Are we all tired of reading about Thanksgiving yet? 

We're starting to feel a little fatigued by our back-and-forth debate about what to serve on Thursday.  There are just so many fantastic recipes out there -- if Thanksgiving were a three-day event, we might be able to cook all the things that we considered this year.

Before we get to what we're serving, let's talk about a few dishes we cooked recently that didn't make it onto our menu.

We don't really believe in test runs for Thanksgiving.  Sure, they're useful if you're trying out a ton of new recipes, entertaining your mother-in-law for the first time, or making something in which you don't feel very confident.  But those attending our Thanksgiving dinner this year are adventurous and forgiving eaters, so we're ready to wing it.  

Still, there were a few recipes we really wanted to try out ahead of time. Here are a couple that didn't find a place on our T-day menu this year. 

• Roasted "Chrysanthemum" Onions (pictured above) -- Our friend Paula shared this recipe with us (you can find it below).  It involves cutting a cross-hatch pattern into onions, roasting and letting them "bloom."  The effect is lovely (although we singed ours just a little too much) and the resulting onions are very flavorful, thanks to the addition of chicken stock and sugar. We liked this recipe, but our Thanksgiving menu is already a little onion-heavy.  We'll definitely serve these another time.

• Chorizo Cornbread Stuffing (Food & Wine November 2008) -- We had some cornbread leftover from an Election Night chili, so we wanted to try a new stuffing/dressing recipe.  Neither of us came from families that believe in adding meat to stuffing.  The resulting stuffing was very salty and crumbly (we prefer a cakey consistency). Overall it was tasty but not worthy of a place at the table.  

If Chrysanthemum Onions and Chorizo Cornbread Stuffing didn't make the list, what are we serving?  Here's our menu:

THANKSGIVING WITH THE BITTEN WORD

COURSE 1

• BLT Popovers -- BLT restaurants make amazing popovers that they bring out prior to your appetizers arriving.  Attached to the popover basket is a recipe for making them.  We're going to give it a try.

• Butternut Squash and Sage Soup with Sage Breadcrumbs (Bon Appétit February 2008) -- We were searching for an excellent butternut squash recipe and this looks to fit the bill.

COURSE 2

• Roasted Dry-Brined Turkey with Gravy (Martha Stewart Living November 2008) -- We had success with dry-brining last year, so we're giving it another go with this recipe.

• Zach's Family's Dressing (using Buttery Cornbread) -- A tried and true recipe from Zach's family (also a non-negotiable on this year's menu).

• Roasted Cranberry Sauce (Saveur November 2008) -- We loved this recipe's use of cranberries and spices and jalapeno!

• Roasted Potatoes with Figs (New York Times) -- We're intrigued by the idea of these tea-steeped figs with potatoes. 

• Brussels Sprout Hash with Caramelized Shallots (Bon Appétit November 2007)-- We love Brussels Sprouts in all forms -- bring on the hash!

• Peas with Roasted Onions and Mint (Bon Appétit November 2006) -- We loved these so much last year, we've decided to make them again this year.

• Spiced Whipped Potatoes with Brown Sugar (Bon Appétit November 2002) -- Two potato dishes may a little over the top, but we're making these again this year, as well.

COURSE 3

• Spiced Cranberry Bread Puddings (Bon Appétit October 2008) -- These sound and look lovely.  We'll likely add a chocolate drizzle because it's just not dessert without chocolate.

• TBD Pie(s) from Cassidy -- We can't wait to see what kind of pie Cassidy brings on Thursday. Come to think of it, maybe we should create a recipe called TBD Pie.
  

So that's the menu -- we'll report back after Thanksgiving.  In the meantime, happy Thanksgiving!

Roasted "Chrysanthemum" Onions

16 small yellow onions (about 2 inches in diameter)
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 cup chicken broth
3 tbls unsalted butter
Preheat oven to 450F

With a sharp knife trim root end of each onion flat so that it is still intact but will stand on end.  Standing each onion on its root end, cut parallel vertical slices at 1/4 inch intervals into but not through onion, stopping about 3/4 inch about root end.  Rotate each onion 90 degrees and cut parallel vertical slices in same manner to form a cross hatch pattern, keeping onions intact.

In a lightly buttered shallow baking dish large enough to let onions open, or ‘flower,’ put onions, root ends down, and sprinkle with sugar and salt to taste.

In a small saucepan heat broth and butter over moderately high heat until butter is melted and pour over onions.  Cover onions with foil and roast in middle of oven 45 minutes, or until tender.  Remove foil and roast onions, basting occasionally, 30 to 45 minutes more, or until golden.  

Onions may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.  Reheat onions before serving.

Serves 8.

Comments

[Scott]

The link to the BLT restaurant doesn't seem to work. :)

[Bitten Word]

Hey Scott -- It's fixed now!

[Mrs. L]

Can I bring my whole family to your place for Thanksgiving?
As for the onion blossoms, I'll have to give that a try sometime soon. My family would think it was "too out there" for our traditional Thanksgiving menu.

[Kevin Graves]

how funny.
We're making Wet brined turkey
My family's cornbread with Texas Hill Country cornbread
Martha's Brussells Sprouts with bacon & apple
Same whipped sweet potatoes you are
Honeybaked ham
Savory Parker House rolls (Martha)
Jacques Pepin's Gratin of Butternut Squash
Ina Garten's Gingerbread
Pumpkin pecan pie.

LOVE this time of year. Happy Thanksgiving Clay & Zach!

[Chocolate Shavings]

This all sounds wonderful. Can I eat Thanksgiving dinner with you guys? ;)

[heather]

great menu! looks yummy! can't wait to see pictures!

[DocChuck]

My wife, Dr. E. and I LOVE onion blossoms. We have enjoyed the Outback version, our home-made version, and now we are going to try YOUR version.

Thanks for sharing.

DocChuck and Dr. E. (a medical doctor)

[DocChuck]

My wife, Dr. E. and I LOVE onion blossoms. We have enjoyed the Outback version, our home-made version, and now we are going to try YOUR version.

Thanks for sharing.

DocChuck and Dr. E. (a medical doctor)

[[eatingclub] vancouver]

That chrysanthemum onion is just lovely. It's such a showstopping presentation for the usually "lowly" onion.

[danny]

what time should I be over?

[Minjae]

You guys are so amazing with all this planning and I'm sure the meal is going to be delish! Am very curious as to how the popovers turn out. I always forget to control self when I go to BLT, stuff self with popovers, only to face a bloody rib eye (with roasted garlic) begging me to finish it off.

[MrsDocChuck]

Now that we are on a fixed income, our trips to Outback are few and far between. So I am very pleased to have a recipe I can try at home. My husband hasn't been himself recently as he is trying to quit smoking (again). I'll probably surprise him with this onion over the weekend. With a lo-fat dip. I'm not a real doctor (a busy registered nurse, though) but I am really pushing my husband to care for his health better.

Thanks for the recipe and Happy Thanksgiving!

[Lick My Spoon]

thanks for all the recipes this whole month! it has certainly eased my cooking for thanksgiving anxiety :) I hope you don't mind, but i linked to your wonderful posts on my site.

happy turkey day!

[abby]

the onions are just beautiful and i love the sound of the stuffing.

[Karyn]

Pretty onion!

I made that brussels sprout recipe from Bon Appetit, too :) People loved it!

[gaga]

How pretty! Even with your great instructions, I'm not sure I could pull it off. Yours looks wonderful though!

[Cory]

Where's the recipe for the blt popovers?

[Zach @ The Bitten Word]

Cory --

We posted the recipe for the BLT popovers after we tried cooking them. (By the way, they were great!)

You can find the recipe at the end of the post here:

http://thebittenword.typepad.com/thebittenword/2008/12/thanksgiving-recap-butternut-squash-and-sage-soup-with-sage-breadcrumbs-and-blt-popovers.html