Food Friday: French Onion Soup

The arrival of cooler evenings has inspired me to start making soup again. I make all sorts of soups but one of my favorites is French Onion soup. I like this recipe for onion soup so much that I almost never try French Onion at a restaurant.....I know that it won't be nearly as good.

And the very best part of this recipe is that it is so incredibly easy.

2-3 tablespoons butter
4 cups thinly sliced onions.......and thinly sliced is key, so don't mess around here
4 cups vegetable broth (cubes or pre-packaged...it doesn't matter)
2 tablespoons red or rose wine
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
4-6 slices garlic toast (see my recipe)
1-2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
ground pepper
ground oregano

A note on onions: I usually use yellow onions, though sometimes I mix red and yellow. If you have a red onion on hand, use it. If not, yellow will do quite nicely.

And about the broth: I prefer vegetable broth because it's sweeter; traditional onion soup uses beef broth and that may be more to your liking.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the onions; make sure they are coated in the butter. Then liberally sprinkle pepper over the onions; stir and then add a bit more pepper. Turn heat down to medium low, place a lid on the pot and let it be for 10 minutes. seriously....don't even think about lifting that lid.

While you are waiting, heat the oven to 425 degrees. Grate the Swiss cheese. But leave that pot alone!

After ten minutes, stir the onions and give them a generous sprinkle with dried oregano. Add the 4 cups of broth, the wine, and Worcestershire. Bring to a rolling boil. Then reduce heat, put the lid back on, and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Your kitchen now smells amazing. At ten minutes, ladle the soup into oven-proof bowls. Top each bowl with a garlic toast or two and then the swiss cheese. Place the bowls in the oven and broil until the cheese is melted and bubbling (about 7-10 minutes).

The bowls and soup will be very hot....be careful not to burn your tongue. Serves 2-3 supper-sized servings or 4-6 appetizer servings. Yum.

Note: These pictures loaded up easy-peasy.  If only I could figure out why.  Sigh.