French Onion Soup

4 (about 5 onions) pounds yellow onions

8 cups beef stock

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon sugar or honey

3 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup white wine

Crusty bread, toasted hard

2 cloves garlic

2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese

Salt & Pepper

 

Directions:

 

Slice onions thin. In a large soup pot, melt your butter and olive oil at medium heat.  Add the sliced onions, cover, and leave alone for 10 minutes. After the onions have steeped for 10 minutes, remove the lid, add about a teaspoon of salt and the sugar or honey, and cook the onions for about an hour, stirring very frequently, until the onions are a deep golden brown.  It's very important that you let the onions caramelize, no matter how long it takes - that is where most of the flavor of the soup comes from.

 

After the onions are done, sprinkle with flour and stir, cooking the flour for a few minutes and coating the onions.  Add the wine and stir. Add the beef stock slowly, stirring between additions to avoid lumps of flour.  Add the thyme. Bring the soup up to a simmer, and simmer for another 30 minutes. Taste the soup half way through for seasoning, and adjust salt and pepper.  Remember that the cheese has some salt, so don't be too liberal.

 

Turn your oven's broiler on. Add the soup to oven-proof bowls. Rub the toast liberally with the garlic cloves. Add the toasted bread to the top of the soup and cover each bowl in grated cheese. Place the bowls on a cookie sheet beneath the broiler and leave until the cheese is melted and begins to brown. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

 

Makes about 6 servings.