soupe a l’oignion gratine (don’t you dare say ‘french’ onion soup)

each time i make this soup, i am amazed at its perfect simplicity. stew the onions in butter until they’re soft, stringy and golden, then pour in boiling homemade beef stock and let the mixture cook down to almost a syrupy consistency. if you have time, make homemade beef stock. it will be worthwhile, trust me. as the stock reduces with the caramelized onions, the soup will achieve that unmistakably syrupy and savory depth of flavor. the crunchy baguette “crouton” topped with oozing melted cheese is an ideal sop for the rich broth.

1 oz. butter
1 lb. yellow onion
salt and pepper, to taste
1 T. flour (optional)
5 oz. dry white wine
3 oz. cream of sherry (optional)
1 qt. homemade beef stock
8 slices baguette
8 oz. swiss or gruyere cheese, grated

peel and halve the onions, and slice them thinly into half moons. in a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, add the onions and some salt. slowly stew the onions for about 30 minutes, stirring often and adding a little water here and there. you want them to caramelize, not burn. meanwhile, bring the beef stock to a boil.

after about 30 minutes, the onions should have a deep caramelized color and be very pliable. you can add a little flour at this point if you’d like, though they should be sticky enough–almost relish-like–from slowly relinquishing liquid and developing their sugars.

deglaze the pan with the white wine (and sherry if you want the soup to be a little sweeter). then pour the boiling beef stock over the onions. bring the soup up to a simmer (medium bubbles), and let it cook for about 20 to 30 minutes. meanwhile, toast the baguette slices in the oven for a few minutes until they are crispy. now your soup should have thickened considerably, and look something like this:

check the seasoning. then remove the soup from the heat, and ladle it into small oven-safe soup tureens. nestle a few of the baguette slices on top, and top the soup with a generous pile of grated cheese.

place the soup bowls under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese has completely melted and the bottom half of the croutons have had enough time to soak in the rich broth. this soup serves 4 people in need of comfort.

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