on Jul 25th, 2007Thousand Island dressing
High summer is prime time for green salads and burgers; many people do not share my aversion to mayo and love Thousand Island dressing on both. It’s a long-time American favorite, popular for about a century. That much we know for sure.
Several legends compete for the story of its origin. According to Wikipedia, it might have been invented in the early 20th century at a Chicago hotel or by a woman living in the Thousand Islands region of Upstate New York. It might also have been invented by George Boldt, proprietor of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, who told his Maître d’hotel to put it on the menu. The Maître d’, knowing which side his bread was buttered on, is said to have named it Thousand Island because Boldt had a vacation home in that region.
A blend of the second and third legends is the version that holds water for Arthur Schwartz, who is something of a legend himself in New York and in food circles. He was a food writer and restaurant critic for some 30 years and was on the radio for more than a decade with a show called Food Talk. The man knows his stuff and his delighful cookbook, New York City Food, is rich in history and lore as well as recipes.
It’s in that book that we get his likely scenario: the woman living in the Thousand Islands region, Sophia LaLonde, created it in the early 1900’s and her husband, a fishing guide, served it to clients. One of them was an actress named May Irwin who liked it so well she got the recipe and told Boldt to put it on the Waldorf menu; he merely did her bidding by passing it along to the Maître d’. Given our culture of celebrity, even back then, I’m inclined to go with Schwartz.
The book also provides the recipe, of course, and this is it.
Thousand Island Dressing
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup chili sauce or ketchup
2 TB finely minced pimento-stuffed olives
1 TB finely minced green pepper
1 TB minced chives
1 chopped hard-cooked egg
2 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
In a small bowl, blend all the ingredients together. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
From Arthur Schwartz’s New York City Food Copyright © 2004 Arthur Schwartz
I am going to try this on my favorite sandwich — rare roast beef, Swiss cheese, cole slaw, Thousand Island dressing. I usually do Russian dressing. The receipe sounds yummy.