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french onion soup
Jamie

French Onion Soup

Sometimes I need a hug. Sometimes I need food that feels like a hug. French onion soup is the latter for me. No matter what kind of mood I'm in, or what's going on in the world, this soup lifts me up and puts a smile on my face. Between the savory soup base, and the ooey, gooey cheese topping, there is nothing I don't like about this soup. It is the happen ending to any day and perfect for those days best spent curled under a blanket with a book in my lap. Enjoy!
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dinner (And Also Second Dinner If You're a Hobbitses)
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 stick unsalted butter
  • 4 large sweet onions 2 sliced, 2 cut into 1" squares
  • 2 cloves garlic diced
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 2 quarts beef broth
  • 3 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 baguette
  • ½ pound grated Gruyere cheese

Method
 

  1. In a large saucepan or a medium pot, melt butter over medium heat.
  2. Add onions, garlic, sugar, pepper, and salt. Cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized.
  3. Add all but approximately 1/4 cup of wine, bring to a boil, then simmer until wine is evaporated.
  4. Use remaining wine to deglaze pan after other wine has evaporated.
  5. Add the beef stock, bay leaves, and 2 sprigs of thyme.
  6. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot and lower heat to maintain low simmer for 30 minutes.
  7. While the soup is simmering, slice the baguette into 1" thick slices and toast in the oven at 425º until golden brown...keep an eye on it; it doesn't take long.
  8. After the 30 minutes are up, discard the bay leaves and cooked sprigs of thyme.
  9. Ladle the soup into 4 ramekins or small bake-able soup bowls. Top each with one of the slices of bread and cover with cheese. Bake at 350° on the highest rack in your oven, until cheese is brown and bubbly (approximately 10 minutes).
  10. Cut remaining sprig of thyme into 4 equal pieces and place one on each bowl. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Notes

Deglazing is the term used to describe moistening a pan and scraping the flavorful brown bits off the bottom. In this recipe we deglaze the pan before adding in the broth so that those flavorful pieces become part of the soup, rather than burn on the bottom. In other recipes, deglazing is the process used to make the sauce for whatever dish you are cooking. In those instances, you should use approximately twice as much liquid as you desire for the final sauce.