February 18, 2011 - French Onion Soup

I have wanted to make French onion soup for soooo long. There was a time in London when I was actually addicted to it, Lee had to hold an intervention. Not really, but that image is pretty funny, eh! Hahaha.

So I found a recipe in my French cook book, although it was called just onion soup, but I used a recipe in one of the new books my mum sent me. It looks simple, and it actually is. So here is the recipe

50g butter
4 large brown onions
3/4 cup white wine
3 cups water
1 ltr beef stock
1 bay leaf
1 tbs plain flour
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 small French baguette
1/2 cup coarsely grated Gruyère cheese

Now, when I made it, as I went I tasted and realised when all the stock was in it lacked depth, so I added a tablespoon of brandy. GOOD DECISION!

Basically you melt the butter, cook the onions until they caramelise, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile bring wine to boil, add the stock and the water, and the bay leaf, return to boil, then remove from heat (covered).
Stir the flour in with the onions and continue to cook for about two minutes.
Then, gradually add the stock mix to the onions, stirring until it boils and thickens slightly.
Reduce heat, simmer uncovered, stir occasionally for about 20 minutes.

For the croutons,  cut up some french stick, grill on one side, turn over, add cheese, and grill until cheese goes golden and melty... mmmmm.

I actually learnt a few things about this recipe. One was the brandy, really oompfs it up a bit, and definitely worth it so if I make it again I will just add it in anyway. Another is I had used some of the stock during the week, so I didn't have enough, I thought I could extend this with white wine. While it worked flavour wise, my soup lacked that deep rich colour of a great French onion soup.
Also, I only used two onions which were plenty, because these were mammoth onions!

Still I call this a success. My first home made French onion soup, and it wont be the last.