Baked French Onion Soup

Worth the time it takes to make.

Baked French onion soup is a fascinating combination of ‘easy to make’, and ‘time-consuming’ to make just right: it only takes a handful of ingredients to make this decadent dish, but they need to be high quality ones to ensure you achieve that layered—and not simply salty— flavour really good French onion soup has.

Use a great quality sourdough for your bread, pick premium cheese that retains a great flavour when melted, and hold off on adding extra salt until the final steps to allow the onions’ sweetness to shine. And when it comes to your white wine selection, never ever select a wine to cook with you wouldn’t want to drink.—CFG


Ingredients

This recipe makes 2 meal-sized servings and can easily be increased for a larger batch .

  • 3 medium onions (2 white, 1 yellow), cut into 1/2” slices

    1 cup cream

    2 tbsp salted butter

    2 cups dry white wine

    4-6 cups chicken broth

    2 slices of day-old, cut into 1/2” chunks

  • 1 cup shredded aged white cheddar (or other bold white cheese)


Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400F. Once ready, place cut chunks of bread on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until pieces are dry (~10min). Remove from oven and set aside.

  2. While bread is toasting, slice 3 medium onions into 1/2” slices and place in a stoneware pot.

  3. Next, add in 2 tbsp of salted butter and 1 cup of cream. Stir everything together and cook over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent, about 10-15 minutes.

  4. Turn the heat up to medium-high so the onion mixture cooks at a slow boil.

  5. Once the liquid has nearly boiled down, turn up the heat slightly and spread the onions over the bottom of the pot. Continue to cook without stirring until the bottom of the pot begins to turn brown, about 5-7 minutes.

  6. Next, stir the onions with a wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the pot to release the browned residue.

  7. Add ½ cup of dry white wine and deglaze the pot, stirring to loosen any bits sticking to the bottom. Stir and combine the liquid fully into the mixture.

  8. Repeat steps 5 through 7– cook the onions without stirring until residue forms again, 5-7 minutes. Scrape up the browned residue and deglaze the pot with another ½ cup wine.

  9. Repeat steps 5 through 7 two more times.

  10. Add 4 cups of chicken stock to the pot and stir until mixture and liquid are fully incorporated. Simmer over medium heat for 10-12 minutes. Season with salt to taste.

  11. Ladle the soup into ovenproof bowls, filling them nearly to the rims. Sprinkle toasted bread chunks on each serving and then divide the shredded cheese and sprinkle on top of the bread.

  12. Transfer the bowls to a baking sheet and carefully put the sheet in the oven. Bake until the cheese is bubbly and caramelized, 20 to 30 minutes.

  13. Serve and enjoy!

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