French Onion Soup

This is French Onion Soup and if you’ve never had it, your totally missing out!

I thought I might attempt a “Wordless Wednesday”, but I really don’t think I have it in me….sorry.  That just means…today, you get words and lots of pictures.  I hope you enjoy.

French Onion Soup is a dish many restaurants offer and it’s absolutely DELICIOUS!  It’s rich broth, caramelized onions, crusty bread and lots of toasty cheese!  What’s not to love about that?  Don’t shy away just because you don’t like onions…I don’t either, and onions are one of only two things my husbands really dislikes (the other being squash).  Yes, there are lots of onions in this soup, but they are literally “cooked to death” and they’re big enough to pick out so you don’t have to eat them.  

FOS (French Onion Soup) looks and maybe sounds difficult to make but honestly, it’s one of the easiest soups there is.  It makes a wonderful appetizer for a fancy meal or paired with a salad it’s the perfect weeknight dinner for even the most busy family.  It can be made ahead and reheated or served again as “left overs”.  Although I haven’t tried it, it could probably be made in the crock pot.  

There is one word of warning…all that cheesy goodness can be a little difficult to wash off the bowls.  It’s best just to  scrape it off with your spoon and eat it with your soup.  You aren’t going to want to miss any of that “yumminess” and it’s helpful to those who are cleaning up.  

My husband says, “Your FOS is better than any restaurant I’ve had!”  Ok, he may be a little biased, but it’s awfully nice that he thinks that.

I like to have extra bread for dipping.

WOW!  I LOVE toasty cheese!

Here’s the Recipe:

2 Tbsp butter

1 large onion

*Cheese

8 cups beef broth

Crusty French style bread

Individual oven safe bowls

Cheese – Provolone or Swiss slices are great because they fit over the bowl nicely.  I used shredded mozzarella this time because I had it on hand.  Use what you like.

Cut onion is slices about 1/4-1/2 inch thick

Place butter in large stock pot over medium-high heat

When just melted, add onions – reduce heat if necessary…butter will burn

Stirring almost constantly, cook onions until caramelized

They will be very tender and browned on the edges

*At this point you could transfer onions and broth to crock pot and leave to cook all day or for several hours*

Add broth and bring to a boil

Reduce heat, cover and simmer at least 20 minutes but can be longer…just keep the lid on.

*If making ahead, stop here, cool and refrigerate until ready to re-heat and serve*

When ready to serve…

Cut bread into slices about 1 inch thick…slightly stale or day old bread is fine for this

Place oven safe bowls on a baking sheet.  Trust me, you don’t want cheese in the bottom of your oven

Ladle hot soup, with some of the onions if you like them, into individual oven safe bowls

Top with a slice or two of bread…depending on how wide your bowl is

Cover generously with cheese….seriously, use a lot!  

Place in oven under broiler and heat until cheese is golden brown and melted

Tip:  Using homemade broth makes it even better.  A few days before making this, I cooked a roast with Au jus.  I saved the left over Au jus and used it as part of my broth.

French Onion Soup

2014-11-05 12:10:12

Serves 4

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

40 min

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

40 min

Ingredients

1. 2 Tbsp butter
2. 1 large onion
3. *Cheese
4. 8 cups beef broth
5. Crusty French style bread
6. Individual oven safe bowls

Instructions

1. Cut onion is slices about 1/4-1/2 inch thick
2. Place butter in large stock pot over medium-high heat
3. When just melted, add onions – reduce heat to medium
4. Stirring almost constantly, cook onions until caramelized
5. Add broth and bring to a boil
6. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer at least 20 minutes but can be longer…just keep the lid on.

When ready to serve

1. Cut bread into slices about 1 inch thick…slightly stale or day old bread is fine for this
2. Place oven safe bowls on a baking sheet. Trust me, you don’t want cheese in the bottom of your oven
3. Ladle hot soup, with some of the onions if you like them, into individual oven safe bowls
4. Top with a slice or two of bread…depending on how width of bowl
5. Cover generously with cheese….seriously, use a lot!
6. Place in oven under broiler and heat until cheese is golden brown and melted

Notes

1. Cheese – Provolone or Swiss slices are great because they fit over the bowl nicely. I used shredded mozzarella this time because I had it on hand. Use what you like.
2. Be careful to turn down heat after adding onions. Butter burns easily
3. Onions are "caramelized" when very tender and browned on the edges
4. Once onions are done you could transfer onions and broth to crock pot and leave to cook all day or for several hours
5. If making ahead, stop after simmering, cool and refrigerate until ready to re-heat and serve*

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