Onion soup is a typical French recipe, usually served with croutons covered in melted cheese. Often, the croutons are placed directly on the soup and then everything is baked so the cheese melts and it’s served hot.
I prefer to gratinate and serve the croutons separately, because I’m not fond of bread that becomes inevitably soggy when in contact with the soup. However, it’s a matter of taste. It takes some time to prepare this soup, as the onions need to caramelize slowly before adding the rest of the ingredients, but it’s absolutely worth it.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation time: 25 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Fall, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 3.3 lbs onions (2.2 lbs cleaned)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2.8 oz butter
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- 0.9 oz flour
- 2 tbsp cognac
- 5 oz white wine
- 30 oz vegetable broth
- 2 leaves bay leaves
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 8 slices baguette
- 1 clove garlic
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- 8.8 oz cheese (melting)
- to taste thyme
Steps
To prepare the onion soup, trim the ends of the onions and peel them. Then cut the onions in half and place them with the flat side down on the cutting board. Slice them thinly. Also peel and slice the garlic.
Put the butter in a pot along with the extra virgin olive oil. When the butter has melted, add the onions and garlic, sprinkle with sugar, salt, pepper, and stir.
Cook the onions uncovered over medium-low heat for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. It seems like a long time, but this is what it takes to caramelize the onions and let them gently soften without burning.
Once they are softened and have a nice caramel color, add the flour and stir. Continue cooking for 1-2 minutes while stirring, then deglaze with cognac and white wine and allow to evaporate.
Pour in the broth, add the bay leaves and washed thyme sprigs, stir and let it cook for another 45 minutes over medium-low heat without a lid, stirring occasionally, until the soup has reduced by about one-third and is a bit thicker.
Serve your hot onion soup with the cheese croutons.
To prepare the cheese croutons, preheat the oven to 350°F in fan grill mode. Cut the cheese into cubes.
Brush the baguette slices with extra virgin olive oil and rub with the halved garlic clove to flavor the bread.
Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake on the top shelf of the oven for a couple of minutes until golden. Remove from the oven, flip the croutons, and cover with cheese cubes.
Bake again on the top shelf of the oven for 2-3 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden. Remove, sprinkle with thyme as desired, and serve immediately together with the onion soup.
