"Vandalia" Onions

Almost twenty years ago, I was living near Chicago and I saw a banner
posted alongside the road. Whatever charitable group it was, they were
selling onions to make money. Makes sense. It was onion season after
all. What didn't make sense is what they were calling them.

"Vandalia Onions"

There is a small town in central Illinois named Vandalia. It was once
the state capital of Illinois and is certainly known for many things, but
I'm pretty certain growing onions isn't one of those things. I am pretty
certain that whoever made the banner knew there was a Vandalia and
had never heard of Vidalia...Georgia, where the onions are indeed
famous. Even though it's been many years ago, I still chuckle to myself
whenever I see Vidalia Onions being sold and wonder if those folks in
Vandalia ever decided to capitalize on the similar names.


For those of you that have never tried a Vidalia Onion, you really
should buy a couple. I've heard of people saying they are so sweet,
you can eat one like an apple. I wouldn't go that far, but they are
definitely worth buying a few and using them in your cooking. We
bought a case (since onions don't tend to go bad quickly if kept in
a cool, dry place) and I've been enjoying them in just about everything!
They're only around for a short time, but make sure they're the ones
from Georgia...not Illinois!