French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup is one of the easiest soups anyone can make. Few ingredients, few steps, and a major return on investment when it comes to taste and the presentation of the final product. This is hands-down one of my favorite soups in the winter. It's too bad I have such a massive cold that taste and smell are virtually gone for me. But the feeling of eating a rich onion soup was all there. Go make this!!

You will need 3 lbs. of red onions, about 5 medium. Trim off the stem end (opposite of the root that you see below). Stand the onion on the flat end and cut in half, pole to pole.



You will end up with the two halves. Keep the root end intact to help keep the onion together while you slice it.



It might seem like overkill, but the right size and shape of onion slices for this soup is important. You don't want bitty pieces or long, stringy ones in the final product. Next lay each half flat and slice in half from root to cut end.



Next, slice the onion perpendicular to the midline cut, keeping the slices about 1/8" thick.



When you get close to the root, flip the end flat side down and finish slicing the onion.



You will end up with quite a large amount of sliced onions. You will need a large Dutch oven for this. A regular pot will do, but the Dutch oven will give you a better fond, which will impart a richer flavor.



Melt 2 tbsp. of butter in a large Dutch oven (at least 5 qts).



Add onions and 1/2 tsp. of salt. Look at how much onion there is! You want to cook the onions on medium to medium high for about 30 -35 minutes until a very, VERY, dark brown fond forms on the bottom of the Dutch oven. Using an enameled DO in this recipe is better than using a black, anodized one. They're both awesome pots, but in this case the light interior will allow you to see much more easily the progress of the onions.



OK, quick side story. I need 6 cups of chicken broth and one cup of beef broth for this recipe. I had already started this process only to realize I'm about a half cup short of chicken broth and I have absolutely NO beef broth! I run to my friend, neighbor, and backup pantry aka Susan Jarvis. She's a food-lover with a pantry that is as rich and full as mine. Susan only had chicken broth on hand so I grab that but I realize when I get home that I DO have beef broth. YAY! A few months ago I needed a tiny amount of beef broth and had no use for the two cups of leftovers (I don't use beef broth as much as I do chicken broth). So I froze the leftovers flat, in a Ziploc, see below. Score one for Diva! Now I don't have to resort to dissolving a heinous bouillon cube, blech.



So I ran some hot water and submerged the frozen broth in it...



And bingo, three minutes later I had beef broth. I like it when things work out like this!



OK back to the onions... See how the onions are starting to reduce and soften?



You want to keep cooking the onions until they soften really well and that brown fond we just talked about develops. Behold how nearly black it is and how soft and reduced the onions are.



Now add the 6 cups of chicken broth...



Followed by one cup of beef broth....



Followed by a 1/4 cup of dry red wine. I used a cabernet here but shiraz or zinfandel will work.



Add 2 sprigs of parsley, one sprig of thyme, and tie them with kitchen twine so that when it's time to remove them, they are easily fished out.



Add a bay leaf and bring the soup to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.



After 20 minutes, remove the herbs and bay leaf and add one tablespoon of balsamic vinegar. French onion soup turns muddy brown and adding some balsamic vinegar at the end of the cooking process pops the onions back to life, giving the soup a richer, darker red hue.



After you stir in the vinegar, simmer for another 5 minutes or so...and then season with salt and black pepper to taste. Remove the soup from the heat. At this point you can either let it come to room temperature and then refrigerate it, or serve it topped with baguette and cheese and broiled.



To serve: slice a baguette either into rounds or diagonally. Toast at 375 for 8 - 10 minutes; flip and toast for 8 - 10 minutes more.




Ladle soup into crocks; top with bread, then with grated or sliced gruyere cheese and grated asiago for an extra sharp pop of flavor.



Broil under the oven broiler on high for 3-4 minutes; rotate and broil another 2 or three minutes longer until the cheese is melted, brownish, bubbly, and ah-maaazing looking like this. Bon Appetit!