French Onion Soup

Last month, I revealed to you all the shocking confession that I had never made a Julia Child recipe. Even though I have an elaborately created plan to move to Paris (which I’ll implement as soon as the investor money comes through … ), I have yet to make a single dish from that master of French cooking, Madame Sheeld (this is how I imagine the French would pronounce it).

Well, then I proceeded to make a crustless bacon and leek quiche, so far from Child’s original recipes that I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t recognize it. Also, maybe a crustless quiche is a pointless thing because what is a quiche without a crust anyway? Better to just call it an omelette perhaps. I’ve thought about this a lot in the past month, just as I often wonder what to call a reduced-sodium saltine.

Lest we get too carried away in the labyrinth that is my logic, let’s just talk about soup: French onion soup, in the style of Julia Child. While I’ve always been a fan of tomato soup, and I love a good cauliflower soup now and then, I’ve never had an opinion on onion soup. I may order it once it a while at a restaurant, but I’ve never craved it; with an ingredients list that consisted of onions and not much else, I was less than intrigued.

Then I made a gigantic pot of beef stew. Left with a lot of beef stock and little desire to make another pot of beef stew, I began hunting around for soup recipes that called for it. French onion seemed to be the only thing different enough to pique my interest, and plus, I mean, it is time for a Julia Child recipe.

So, with a fictional Julia smiling over me, I powered through the cutting of three onions, tears streaming down my face. Next, I sweated the onions out — the fun part, since you get to watch TV while doing it. Then, I stirred and stirred and stirred, for over an hour, waiting for the onions to caramelize into a deep honey brown. Seriously, this took forever, for reasons I’m not entirely sure of. By this point, I was extremely hungry, a little bitter and kind of tired of moving my right arm.

But all of the effort is definitely (definitely!) worth it. The soup is slightly sweet, earthy, peppery, with layer upon layer of flavor. Smitten Kitchen, where I got the recipe from, describes it as “weepingly delicious.” They may have been onion-related, but there were definitely tears shed — topped with Brioche croutons, this soup is a fall dinner I could eat for the next six weeks.

French Onion Soup
Recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, by way of Smitten Kitchen

– 3 medium-large yellow onions (about 1 pound), thinly sliced

– 1-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

– 1/2 tablespoon olive oil

– 1/2 teaspoon salt + more, to taste

– 1/8 teaspoon granulated sugar (helps with the caramelization of the onions)

– 1-1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

– 2 cups beef stock* + 2 cups water (I only had 2 cups of stock, so I added water as well — if you have a full quart of stock, go ahead and add it in)

– 1/2 cup dry white wine

– Freshly ground black pepper

– 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme (optional)

*Mushroom stock is a great vegetarian option.

1) In a large heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter and oil together over low heat. Add the onions, tossing to coat them in the oil. Cover and reduce the heat to really low, so that they slowly steep for 15 minutes. Walk away and reserve your stirring powers, because you’ll definitely need them later.

2) After 15 minutes, uncover and stir in the salt and sugar. Cook the onions on medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until they turn a deep golden color. (The recipe said this would take 30-40 minutes, but it took me over an hour. I was not pleased, especially towards the end when the onions smell impossibly delicious.)

3) Once the onions are caramelized, stir in the flour and cook for 3 minutes. Pour in the wine, stock and water, stirring between additions. Season with salt, pepper and thyme, if desired (it should be).

4) Simmer partially covered for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Correct seasonings if desired, then serve.

Note: I made Swiss-Brioche croutons to serve alongside the soup, mostly because I had some leftover Brioche. Smitten Kitchen has a recipe for the gratineed Gruyere lid that traditionally tops French onion soup, but if you’re pressed for time, just place a slice of Emmental (or any other Swiss cheese) on a piece of toast and pop it in the oven or toaster oven for a few minutes, until the cheese melts.

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