Spiked French Onion Soup
French Onion Soup
Cognac, vermouth, and real onions? Sorry soup-in-an-envelope, you don’t stand a chance!
However, I learned the hard way that a shower is necessary after making this soup. I am sure the waft of onion that trailed behind me offended a number of people. But who cares? Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, being a temporary Stink-Monster is totally worth it.
[print_this]RECIPE
Instead of the vermouth, a dry white wine can be substituted.
Ingredients
1 1/2 – 2lbs of yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons salted butter
1 tablespoon oil
2 fresh or dried bay leaves
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 quarts beef stock (or 1 quart beef stock, 4 cups water, 2 cups beef broth), boiling
1/2 cup extra dry white vermouth
1/4 cup of cognac
salt and pepper to taste
1 baguette, sliced into rounds and toasted.
grated Swiss and Parmesan cheese
Directions
1. Melt the butter into the oil over low heat in a saucepan. Add the onions, thyme, and bay leaves. Cover, and cook slowly for about 15 minutes.
2. Uncover, increase the heat to about medium. Remove the thyme and bay leaves; stir in the salt and sugar (the sugar helps the onions brown.) Cook, stirring frequently, for about 30-40 minutes until the onions have turned a deep, golden brown.
3. Add the flour and stir constantly for about 3 minutes or until the raw flour taste has cooked out.
4. Remove from heat. Blend in the boiling stock, add the vermouth and cognac. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Simmer, partially covered, for at least 30-40 minutes. Skim the film off the top as necessary. Adjust seasoning.
6. Preheat the broiler to 475ยบ
7. Ladle the soup into oven-safe bowls or a soup tureen. Float two rounds of toast on top and sprinkle with the grated cheese.
8. Broil for about 2-3 minutes or until the cheese has browned lightly.
[/print_this]
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There are far worse things to smell like. I have been wanting to make this for a while, but it is not so much the soup as making the baguettes that I just can’t find the time for. Nice job.
Sounds delicious and perfect for the Fall weather! Can’t wait to try it!
I adore french onion soup and you’ve kicked it up a notch!
Thanks for the comments ladies! I hope you like it if you try it out. Let me know if you find a good addition to it; although, I find it hard to top Julia Child but you never know!
Looks delicious!
I will make it soon/
t y !
Such a beautiful pic – wow!
Yumm…..that looks delicious!! Can I come over and have you make some for me??? I wish you were closer!! Hope your holidays were great and hope to see you soon!!
Becky
Hey Margarrrita,
I’ve been on a serious french onion soup kick lately and am thinking about trying this one. Although I love the general restaurant serving with cheese caking the side of the bowl (the main reason why I order it), I am equally fascinated with replacing croutons for slices of baguette even if all they get is a ‘sprinkling of cheese’. Do you know how many servings this soup yields? Grazi Bella!
Maggie replied: — January 27th, 2011 @ 4:01 pm
I think that you could make some homemade croutons out of the baguette and it would be really good. In fact, I may try to do that next time. It’ll be a little bit easier to eat that way. But load up as much cheese as you want–you can never have too much!
I think the recipe yields about 6-8 servings, depending on the size of the bowls. I know the two of us ate off of it for two days and I still dumped some.
This is one of my favorite soups. I love the addition of cognac and vermouth…..my kind of recipe! (-;
Maggie replied: — January 30th, 2011 @ 4:48 pm
Everything is better with booze
Love the photo too!
Is it weird that I come over to your blog sometimes just to visit the picture of the soup? It looks so good…
Maggie replied: — February 4th, 2011 @ 1:24 pm
Ha! Thanks Kristina!
Is it weird that I come over to your blog sometimes just to get drunk off of your cocktail photos?