My love of French onion soup began in Paris when I was 12 years old. After a long morning walking the city, my family and I ducked into a charming bistro to fortify our weary bodies. I ordered onion soup which arrived in a beautiful handled pottery bowl that was, to my delight, completely covered in melted cheese. I loved scraping off the crispy browned cheese from the sides of the bowl with my spoon and wondered, after much digging, if I'd ever actually reach the soup within. The rich broth-soaked bread and sweet onions I finally discovered had me spellbound. At each subsequent bistro I'd order onion soup, just to compare it to the previously eaten bowl. I'd rate it by how much cheese one bowl had to another (the more, the better), the richness of the broth (a deep brown was best), and how much onion it had (too little and it failed).
The key to creating a delicious French onion soup lies in the broth, which starts with a proper caramelization of the onions. Start with cutting your onions into nice half moons. To do so, peel the onions, cut them in half from top to root, then slice into about 1/8-1/4-inch-thick slices. Slowly brown them in butter until they are nicely caramelized, taking care not to burn them. The flavors in the caramelization will give you a beautiful foundation on which to build your broth. Now you're on your way to creating a delicious classic soup. Try this version from Munchin with Munchkin who uses dry sherry to add depth of flavor to her tasty soup recipe.
Classic French Onion Soup
Submitted to Foodista by Munchin with Munchkin
Serves 4
¼ cup salted butter
4-6 yellow onions, finely sliced into half moons (cut in half, then sliced from top to root)
¼ Tsp. flour
½ cup dry sherry
5 cups beef broth
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 sprigs fresh parsley
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
4 slices of a crusty French baguette
1 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat.
Add onions to the pot and sprinkle with flour. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 45 minutes stirring occasionally. If the onions are cooking too quickly, reduce heat.
When the onions are tender and golden in colour, de-glaze the pan with sherry.
Pour beef broth into the pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add herbs, salt and pepper to taste.
Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Butter slices of French bread and bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes until very dry. Set aside.
Remove herb stalks and bay leaf.
Ladle soup portions into four oven safe ramekins. Top with crusty French bread and sprinkle with cheese. Place ramekins on a cookie sheet and bake uncovered at 400 for 5-10 minutes until cheese is bubbling. Broil for one minute more to brown the top.
Serve warm.
