French Onion Soup
Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 spanish or sweet onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 fresh thyme sprigs
1 cup red wine
3 heaping tbsp all-Âpurpose flour
2 quarts beef broth
1 baguette, sliced
1/2 lb grated gruyere
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 min. The more caramelized and sift the onions, the better the final soup will taste!
2. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 min. Remove and discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
3. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 min. to cook out the raw flour taste.
4. Now add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 min. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. To serve: Ladle the soup into ovenproof bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls in the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese.
Alternate serving method would be to make croutons of the bread sprinkled with the cheese and baked in the oven. Then topping the soup with these.
