French Onion Soup, courtesy of The LATE Chef, Kevin Wilson (RIP), and brought to you by the wanna be gourmet, Evan J.
Ingredients:
1 tbs. of E.V.O.O. before the butter
1 tbs. of Clarified butter (unsalted)
Several onions (2-3 medium) sliced 1/8″ THIN. I prefer Yellow, Sweet, Walla Walla, or White onions.
1 tsp. of cornstarch and water
1-2 quarts of a thoughtfully crafted Beef Stock; avoid salty versions
1 can of low sodium chicken broth
1 tsp.+ pale dry sherry to taste
1-3 tsps. worcestershire sauce to taste
French bread or day old bread -cut into cubes; light shmear of olive oil & minced Garlic (peppery is nice).
Gruyere or other tasty Swiss cheese (If you’re not into Swiss, use Provolone or Muenster)
Modus Operandi:
Prepare beef stock ahead of time, but keep hot on a low flame while preparing onions. There are some boxed versions to save time if you’re in a hurry, E.G. Rachel Ray. She pays me nothing, but saves time if I’m in a crunch.
Carmelize onions in E.V.O.O. and clarified butter- use a 4-quart stock pot or dutch oven
Add beef stock to the carmelized onions and the sherry. At this point, you can choose to thicken it up with the Cornstarch–it really is a personal thing–Do you want a thicker French Onion consistency? It’s your call.
Add all of the chicken broth and the Worcestershire to taste. Maintain a low-medium boil for about 10+ minutes so the flavors blend (“yeah, you blend, Marisa Tomei…”)
Optional: some people add Soy Sauce for Salt content and a drop of Molasses. Again, the choice is yours. As for me, I’m not a fan of hardcore salt as I like to control it whenever I can. And besides, people can add their own salt.
Pour onion soup mixture into a ceramic bowl that can be placed in the oven. If you lack one of these, go to a thrift store and buy an old fashioned, brown crock soup bowl with a handle – should be about $1.00 in U.S. currency
Place one or two pieces of Swiss atop the coated bread cubes; put under a broiler element and brown the cheese. Obviously, don’t burn the cheese or you’ll want to invest in a different career.
Do I garnish the thing? Well, I guess you can sprinkle some Italian Seasoning, or Fresh Parsley… It’s the little things that add up to a big difference in any dish. Experiment, make it better, drop me a line. I always put the energy out there for improvement and good eats. You can also tell that I’ve been duping lines from Food Network without really ripping them off.
Again, some of you have been holding back your comments. If you have ideas for a recipe and want to air it on my page for free, I’m okay with that. Just make sure your food contains love! Best, Evan J. “wanna be” gourmet.
DIG IN AND ENJOY!