You’ve learned so much about onions, it’s now time to try the penultimate onion dish: French Onion Soup. Hightail it to the store and stock up with a good 5 pounds of onions.
We’ve got the perfect recipe.
French Onion Soup Gratinée
The use of chicken broth and white wine in this recipe makes for a lighter than normal French Onion Soup, but cookbook author Linda Carucci — and our millennial cook, Hannah, think it’s worth it. See how its done in this video.
Ingredients
5 pounds large yellow onions, sliced 1/16 inch thick
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup all purpose flour
1 cup dry white wine or vermouth
6 cups homemade chicken broth
3 fresh thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf, preferably imported
1 tsp kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
12 baguette slices (not sourdough), each ¾ inch thick and cut diagonally
6 ounces Gruyére cheese, coarsely shredded on the large holes of a box grater to yield 1 ½ cups
Directions
Heat a heavy 8-quart pot over medium-high heat. Add butter. When butter is hot enough to sizzle a piece of onion, add the onions and sauté, stirring occasionally, until they wilt and lose their moisture (about 10 minutes).
Reduce heat to lowest setting and cook until onions are caramelized (about 15 minutes). They should be sticky and clinging together. Sprinkle with the flour and cook another 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the wine all at once. When wine evaporates, add chicken stock, and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat so soup is at a steady simmer, cover partially, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the broiler and arrange an oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler element. Line a sturdy, rimmed backing sheet with a silicone baking liner or aluminum foil. Arrange 6 deep, ovenproof soup bowls or 12-ounce ramekins on the lined baking sheet and set aside.
Place the baguette slices on another baking sheet and lightly toast both sides under the broiler. They will need only 2-3 minutes on each side. Set aside and leave broiler on.
When the soup is done, taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Remove and discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Ladle the soup into the bowls and top each with 2 toasted baguette slices placed side by side.Top the baguette slices with the cheese, dividing evenly among bowls.
Place the baking sheet with the soup bowls under the broiler and watch closely, moving the pan as needed to expose al the bowls to the broiler element so the cheese melts evenly. Remove from the oven as soon as the cheese has melted, a bout 1 minute. Serve immediately.
Copyright Linda Carucci, www.CookingSchoolSecrets.com. Permission granted for use in this National Onion Association blogpost.
