I will admit that I’ve never been much of a soup person. Ever. When I was younger and would eat at a restaurant, I’d see lunch specials that offered a sandwich or salad with soup and I’d wonder if I could have the sandwich and salad and forget the soup entirely.
That was until I met French Onion. Now everything has changed.
My sister, her husband, my husband, and myself were out for dinner one night and both of the guys ordered french onion soup to start. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why – I mean my husband NEVER eats soup unless he’s gone a man cold. Well, after mooching some bites of the stuff from my husband’s bowl that night, I was hooked. It’s hard not to get hooked straight away; who doesn’t crave caramelized onions, bread, and melted cheese? It finally all made sense.
Knowing how much two of the men in my life loved it, and loving the challenge of mastering a new recipe, it was imperative find a good way to make it.
Here it is: the recipe for french onion soup that I make at home.
[Recipe] French Onion Soup
2 Tbsp Butter
8 Onions, thinly sliced
1 tsp Salt
4 Garlic Cloves, minced
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/2 C Sherry (*optional, but why leave it out?)
4 C Beef Broth
3 Bay Leaves
3 Sprigs Fresh Thyme (you can also substitute 1 tsp of dried thyme here)
Rye Bread, sliced (or whatever bread you’d like)
Gruyere Cheese (or another melty cheese)
Now, let’s get started.
Slice the onions very thinly. I use a mandolin for this. Notice in the picture that my onion with the hand guard looks like a little cowboy? This is a hilarious coincidence.
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.
Add onions and salt. Stir. Cook, covered, for about 45 minutes. The onions should be soft, but should not yet have started to caramelize.
Add garlic and pepper. Stir. Cook, uncovered, on medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until onion in caramelized.
Add sherry. Heat and stir, scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
Add beef broth, bay leaves, and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, without stirring.
Discard bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
Once the soup is ready, ladle it into an oven proof bowl. Cut a nice slice of bread (we usually use rye) to lay over the top of the liquid, submerging it just slightly. Cover the bread with your cheese of choice (gruyere is the classic choice) and put the soup under the broiler of your oven for a couple of minutes, until the cheese is melted, browning, and bubbly.
Serve to whomever you would like to make your new best friend. We enjoyed it tonight served with a turkey pesto panini. Comforting, warm, and delicious.
