French Onion Soup

I haven't posted for a few days.  I've been "under the weather," the weather has been "under the weather," and all I want to do is crawl under a blanket and eat soup.  I looked at the weather forecast for the next ten days, and the high temperatures are only going to be in the "teens" and twenties.  Overnight lows will be in the single digits.  I do hope February will be more kind to us. I really can't stand much more.

Speaking of soup, last week some farmer friends I visited were kind enough to share some of their surplus of onions and squash they had stashed away in the cold cellar. The first thought that came to my mind was French Onion Soup. A perfect soup for frigid weather. 

So I tried a version made by Tyler Florence, from the Food Network.  I like Tyler, I think he's rather fine! And the soup was great - even better over the next few days.  I admit, it was hard for me to part with the entire cup of red wine the recipe called for, so I poured one for myself to ease the pain, and all was good. I'll definitely be making this recipe again and again.



Butternut Squash Soup is in the background as well...

French Onion Soup   Serves 4-6

1/2 cup of unsalted butter ( I used salted and it worked)
4 large onions, sliced
2 or 3 cloves of garlic-chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
sea salt and black pepper
1 cup of red wine
3 tablespoons of flour
2 quarts of beef broth
1 baguette -sliced
1/2 pound of grated gruyere or provolone

Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme.   Cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes or so.  Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are somewhat dry, about five minutes.  Discard the bay leaves and the thyme sprigs. 

Don't let the onions (which have now turned a lovely shade of purple from the wine) scare you.  It will look normal in the end, I promise.

Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir.  Turn the heat down to medium-low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 minutes to cook out the flour taste.  Now add the beef broth, bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.  Season to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper. 

When you're ready to eat, preheat the broiler.  Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet in a single layer.  Sprinkle with the gruyere and broil until toasted and golden brown, 3-5 minutes.

Ladle the soup in bowls and float the baguette slices on top.