French Onion Soup

A bowl of beautifully rich, carmelized onion goodness....deliciously gooey cheese and just a touch of fresh parsley for contrast.  Don't you just love French Onion Soup?  I do...and it is *so* easy.  It has been rainy and (relatively) chilly here the last week, and soup is the perfect thing to warm up from the inside.  This recipe is just sort of a "wing-it" sort of thing, and is a great way to begin a weeknight meal, or to take to work for lunch.

french onion soup1

french onion soup2

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter

2 large yellow onions, very thinly sliced

1/2 cup white wine (I just poured it in...the amount is approximate)

1 1/2 quarts beef broth or consommé

1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves

1 bay leaf

cracked black pepper to taste

sliced baguettes and cheese slices for serving

chopped parsley for garnish

Preparation:

Using a heavy bottomed pot, melt butter over medium heat.

Toss in onions and sautee (stirring constantly) until carmelized (this should take about 15 minutes...be careful not to burn the onions...you want them nice and brown, but not burnt)

Once the onions are nice and brown, add the wine and deglaze the pot a bit, stirring around to get all of the delicous brown goodness off of the bottom.

Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes, then add broth or consommé, thyme, bay and pepper.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.

Ladle soup into oven proof bowls (or microwave safe bowls if you prefer).

Top each bowl with a slice of baguette, and top with cheese (I like gouda, but swiss or gruyere is typical....this is just personal preference).

Place bowls on a baking sheet and broil until cheese melts (or alternatively, microwave until cheese melts).

Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve.