French Onion Soup

Ingredients

• 4 Large Spanish Onions
• 4 Tbs Butter
• 6 Cups Beef Stock
• 2 Tsp Sugar
• 1 Cup Red Wine
• 1 Small French Baguette
• 1 Cup Gruyere Cheese

Preparation

• Peel onions; slice. Melt butter in pan; add onions. Cover onions with circle of waxed paper. Cover; cook 45 minutes over low heat. Boil stock to reduce by one-third.
• Remove paper from top of onions and sprinkle with sugar; cook over medium heat until onions are golden, 10-15 minutes. Stir well: do not let them darken, or soup will taste bitter.
• Add reduced stock and wine; partially cover; simmer for 45-60 minutes. Prepare croutes with baguette; coarsely grate cheese. Ladle soup into heatproof bowls. Preheat broiler to high; set bowls on baking sheet.
• Float 2 croutes on surface of each serving; sprinkle with grated cheese. Slide bowls under broiler, close to the heat. Broil until cheese is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes.

Notes

I toast my croutes before floating them on the soup. The soup also tastes better the LONGER you let it sit. Typically I try to make the soup a day before I plan to serve it. You can substitute a Spanish onion with a sweet onion, but would then reduce sugar by half.

Barb Wilson