French Onion Soup

I actually made this soup last week but  decided to post the recipe today because today is the first day of the French Open. I am sad that Venus Williams lost in the first round today. I have never met her - but I think that if I did I would walk away saying what a lovely lady.

I used Paula Deen's French Onion soup recipe for two reasons - first because I love Paula Deen and have always have good luck with her recipes and second because I had all of the ingredients for her recipe. A lot of French Onion soup recipes had ingredients like vermouth. And vermouth isn't one of my pantry staples.

Ingredients:

8 onions, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/3 cup olive oil

2 heaping tablespoons all purpose flour

8 cups of beef stock

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper to taste

Loaf of French bread, cut into 3/4 inch slices

2 cups grated Gruyere cheese

When I was slicing the onions I had to stop several times because my eyes were watering!

Directions:

Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-low heat until the onions are tender and golden brown. This will probably take 45 minutes to one hour.

Once the onions are golden brown  add the two tablespoons of flour and sauté for a few more minutes - browning the flour.

Add the beef stock and wine and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the thyme and bay leaf.

Reduce the heat, cover and gently simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the bay leaf and add salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile coat each side of the French bread with a little butter or olive oil. I used olive oil.

Toast the French bread in a 300 degree oven for 3 to 4 minutes until it is golden brown.

Ladle the soup into oven proof bowls and add a few pieces of the toasted bread on top of each bowl of soup. Cover the top of each bowl with a small handful of cheese. You should have four to six bowls of soup - depending on your bowl size. And I had few small tupperware containers of leftover soup.

Set the bowls on a foil lined baking sheet and place them in a 350 degree oven for 4 to 5 minutes and then a minute or two under the broiler.

Note - my hands smiled like onions and garlic for 24 hours - despite my constant hand washing.

I am excited to watch the French Open over the next two weeks!