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| Perfect for a cold and rainy Spring day |
Saved the rich, dark broth from the Bourbon Beef Stew to make this delicious onion soup. Tom prefers it without the Gruyere cheese because "it's too stringy." I like the nuttiness of the Gruyere.
I am definitely going to make both the Bourbon Beef Stew and this French Onion Soup again.
---Barbara
French Onion Soup
Serves 4 for dinner or 8 as a first course
3-4 cups of leftover broth from Bourbon Pot Roast (fat removed)
5 - 6 onions, cut into crescents
1 T. butter
pinch of salt
1 quart (4 cups) culinary beef stock
1 ounce per serving of Gruyere cheese, grated
4 baguette slices or Carr's water crackers per serving
In a 3-quart pot with cover, melt 1 T. butter, then add the sliced onions, turn the heat on low, cover and let them steam for 5 minutes to get them going. Remove cover and set aside. Stir every 10 minutes or so until they caramelize, i.e., turn a deep caramel color but are not browned. It will take 50 minutes to an hour.
If the pan gets dry, then you could add a little more butter.
Add a pinch of salt to the onions when they are done.
Add the the leftover broth, and an additional quart (4 cups) of culinary beef broth.
Bring to a simmer, cover and let the flavors mingle for 20 minutes or so.
Two options for the next step:
1) You can make traditional French Onion soup, by ladling hot soup into broiler-proof bowls (on a broiler-proof pan), then floating slices of baguette on top, and piling on loads of Gruyere, and broiling until golden brown.
Or, 2) you can make a short-cut version by ladling hot soup into bowls, then floating some water crackers on top, then some Gruyere cheese.
The residual heat will melt the cheese.
B