Authentic french onion soup

the original way—vegetarian

Or simple, every day onion soup

French Onion Soup, that wonderful elixer that’s topped with a crisp crouton and smothered in melted cheese, is usually made with beef stock in the USA. That makes it off limits to those of us who keep kosher.

 But the origins of the soup are quite different. This was French peasant food, something that could be made with a few onions, some stale bread, and an end of cheese that’s past its prime. It’s amazing how a little creativity can do so much with so little.

This is the way my brother learned to make onion soup in culinary school. And the best part is that it’s kosher/dairy.

Ingredients: 

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 8 large onions

• ¼ cup dry sherry

• several sprigs of fresh thyme

• freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste

 Method:

• First we make the stock. Cut 5 of the onions into thick slices and add them to a pot with 8 cups water. Add salt to taste, and several grinds of pepper. Bring it to a boil, then cover the pot—with the cover somewhat askew. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 45 minutes. Note: if you’d like a soup with a deeper color, include some of the onion skin, but not too much or your soup will be bitter.

• Your pot of water should now have a strong onion flavor. Strain the onion stock and discard the onions and the thyme.

• Now we make the soup. Peel the remaining onions and cut them in half, end to end. then lay them flat on a cutting board and slice them into very thin half rounds. You can do this by hand or with a mandoline.

• In another soup pot, warm the oil. Add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt, and sauté them over medium/low heat until they’re very soft and golden in color, Resist the urge to raise the heat and brown them faster. It’s the low and slow cooking that lets them reach their full potential, releasing all of their natural sugars so that they’re soft, sweet, and a beautiful golden brown.

• Add the sherry and cook for a few minutes to burn off the alcohol. Then add the strained onion stock and another sprig of thyme. Simmer the soup for half an hour.

• Now you’ve got a lovely, light onion soup that can be served as is, or topped with a gentle grating of parmesan or other hard grating cheese. 

  Or, take it to the next level and make that fabulous treat that we call French Onion Soup.

• Preheat the oven to 350°.

• You’ll need the soup from the above recipe, plus 4, ¾ inch thick slices of a baguette, and 6 ounces of gruyere cheese, grated on the large holes of a box grater.

• Make the croutons: Brush the baguette slices lightly with olive oon both sides and put them directly on the rack of the oven. Toast them until lightly colored. Watch them carefully so they don’t over-toast. Toasting the bread ensures that it won’t instantly turn into a sponge when it hits the hot soup.

• Divide the soup into 4 oven-safe crocks, making sure to evenly distribute the onion slices. Top each one with a crouton and cover it with the cheese. Add a light grating of parmesan or other hard grating cheese and slide it into the oven. Bake the crocks until the soup is bubbling and the cheese has melted and started to brown in places.