French Onion Soup

The weather lately has had me craving a nice hot bowl of french onion soup, and I got around to making some this week, one day at 3:00 in the afternoon. One thing I like about french onion soup is that you can have it as an "in between lunch and dinner snack", especially good when you are walking in from a chilly fall walk after a 2:30 class or appointment. You know, when an afternoon coffee just will not due.

Now, my french onion soup is one that is easy, and fast! To me, an onion and beef broth based soup should not be time consuming and should be able to wear the title of a homemade soup that can be thrown together nice and quick, on days when it is a snack well-needed. It is a "cup of tea", that sure beats - a cup of tea.

The Recipe

Ingredients:

2 to 3 large sweet onions

butter (few tbsp)

black pepper, to taste

red wine

beef cubes (or french onion soup mix)

french baguette

garlic powder

parmigian cheese

olive oil (or Swiss or Gruyere cheese)

In a large saucepan, melt butter and saute your onions until golden, adding pepper to taste. I like adding a lot of pepper, making sure my onions are visibly seasoned, which will give your soup a noticeable bite. Add red wine, to taste, which will also give your onions and final result of your soup some colour.

Add water to the pan, enough so that your onions are paired with a good amount of broth. Bring to a boil, adding your beef cubes (or french onion soup mix). Once your broth has gained its deep colour, turn to low heat and allow to simmer.

While your soup simmers, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Cut your baguette into slices just about 1 inch or so thick, keeping it on the thinner side. Lay your slices on a baking tray and add a spread of butter to each, topped with a sprinkle of garlic powder, and a generous amount of parmigian cheese. Add an additional cheese of choice if your appetite prefers, otherwise just drizzle over with olive oil. If you are adding another cheese besides parmigian, you may not necessarily need or want to add oil.

Bake you baguettes briefly, until the cheese is melted and they are browned and crispy. Once they are done, remove your soup from heat. You can eat your baguettes alongside your soup, or for the more traditional experience, place them directly atop your soup and eat directly from the bowl.

Who knew what was historically known as "food for the poor people" could be so good,

Haley