Onion Pie, mmm mmm!

[Update, 2016: check out the vegan version!]

My sister and I are doing some of the cooking for Thanksgiving this year, and today I baked this simple-but-delicious savory pie for the first time. My grandmother used to make it for family dinners.

3 cups sliced cubed onions

3 tablespoons butter

2 eggs

1/2 cup evaporated milk

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 pastry shell

My favorite pastry recipe is from David Tanis' A Platter of Figs, which yields two crusts and is equally great for sweet and savory:

2 cups flour

2 sticks of butter (cut into thin slices)

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg, beaten, and enough cold water to make 1/2 cup

Mix the flour, butter, and salt, then add the egg and water. It'll be a little sloppy, so you'll need to throw in a bit of extra flour to make the whole thing come together. This dough needs refrigerating for an hour.

Anyway, back to the filling instructions:

Sauté onions in butter until tender. Pour in pastry shell. Beat eggs slightly then add milk, salt and pepper. Pour mixture over onions. Bake at 425º F for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Some notes:

• This recipe makes a 9" pie.

• I added some cumin and fresh basil to the basic recipe.

• I used both yellow and red onions.

• The two pies were in the oven for just about half an hour.

(I'd rather not use disposable pie pans, but I am making six.)