French Onion Soup
This is the BEST French Onion Soup EVER. EVER! I would never lie to you. I am blown away by this recipe. The Mr. had a very big part in this soup, and to quote the Mr … he is very passionate about soup so there was no way we would fuck it up! French Onion Soup can be intimidating at first but as long as you plan your approach it is actually a very easy soup. I had only been able to actually enjoy a french onion soup maybe two or three times in my life before taking on the challenge of creating our own. I set out with the goal of perfecting it and that is exactly what the Mr. helped to create …. PERFECTION.
Ingredients
5 Yellow Onions
6 Cups Beef Broth
3-4 Cups Gruyere Cheese (the more the better!)
1 Cup White Wine
1 Baguette Loaf
1 Small Parmesan Cheese Rind
Handful of fresh parsley
5-8 Twigs Fresh Thyme
5-10 Whole Baby Carrots
3-4 Bay Leaves
9 Garlic Cloves, 6 Smashed & 3 whole peeled
2 Tbsp. Flour
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2-3 Tbsp. Whole Peppercorns
2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp. Fish Sauce
1-2 Tsp. Salt
1-2 Tsp. Pepper
Green Onion, chopped (Garnish)
Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350F degrees. In a large pot, combine the beef broth, parsley, carrots, thyme, parm rind, bay leaves, 6 smashed garlic cloves and peppercorns. Cook over medium heat.
Cut the yellow onions end to end then remove the tough ends. Slices the onions along the grain and separate out.
In a second large pot, heat oil up then add onions and cook over medium heat. It is going to look like too many onions but that is EXACTLY what you want. Stir the onions frequently. Allow the onions to caramelize and brown (around 15-20 minutes).
Once they have fully caramelized and there is an amazing aroma add in the flour, and mix well, cook around 1-2 minutes.
Cut the baguette into thick slices, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper then bake for 5-10 minutes or until they start to brown.
After removing the sliced loaf from the oven take the 3 remaining garlic cloves and rub on the slices of bread. Cut the slices into large cubes approx. 2 inches by 2 inches.
Add in the white wine to the onion pot an mix well. This will help get the flavors stuck to the bottom of the pan back into the onions.
Grab a strainer or colander with really small holes and place over top the onion pot. Grab the broth pot and pour into the onion pot through the colander. The colander will catch the flavor enhancers (bay leaves etc).
Add in the soy sauce, fish sauce, salt & pepper. Taste test and add more spices as needed.
Get the soup bowls ready and place 1-2 bread pieces in the bottom of each bowl. Evenly separate the soup out into 4 french onion soup bowls. Top each with 3-4 pieces of baguette, then a hearty portion of cheese. Repeat with pieces of baguettes and all remaining cheese.
Broil on LO for 10 minutes or until cheese becomes golden brown.
