French Onion Soup Recipe

Preparation

1. Peel, rinse and slice the onions thinly and evenly. Finely chop or mince two garlic cloves and set them aside.

Cooking onions

1. Place a heavy pan on the stovetop. Add butter.
2. When butter states melting, add the sliced onions with a pinch of salt.
3. Mix the onions with the butter really well.
4. Stirring often continue to sauté the onions on a low or medium-low heat until the onions caramelize.
5. Initially stir the onions after an interval of 2 to 3 minutes till they become light golden. When the onions turn light golden, then stir the onions continuously for even cooking and browning.

Deglazing

1. Once the onions have caramelized and have a nice golden color to them, add 2 tablespoons dry white wine.
2. Deglaze and remove all the stuck bits of caramelized onions from the bottom of the pan. Sauté for 1 to 2 minutes.

Adding flour

1. Now add the flour.
 Mix thoroughly and sauté for 2 minutes.
2. Next add the garlic and bay leaf. Mix again and sauté for a minute. If the onions start sticking to the pan, then sprinkle some water or stock.
3. Add vegetable stock and the rosemary sprig. Additionally, season with salt and freshly crushed black pepper. Stir and mix.
4. I have added salt, as the homemade vegetable stock I had made, did not have any salt in it. But if use stock with salt in it, then you can skip adding salt or add less of it.

Cooking soup

1. Cover the pan with its lid. Simmer for 30 minutes on a low heat.
2. You can check the soup while it is simmering after an interval of 10 to 15 minutes. 

Toasting Bread or Baguette slices

1. When the soup is simmering, toast the slices of french bread or baguette or regular wheat bread or white bread.
2. Slice the french bread or your preferred bread into slices with ½ inch thickness.
3. Place the baguette slices on a baking tray. Brush with some melted butter or olive oil.
4. In a preheated oven toast bread slices at 230 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit) until light golden.

Broiling (Grilling)

1. Place the empty bowls (baking safe and oven heat proof) in a baking tray for individual servings. You can also opt to use a baking safe pot or pan like the Dutch oven.
2. Pour the prepared onion soup in the soup bowls.
3. Place toasted bread slices on the onion soup.
4. Sprinkle grated gruyere cheese all over the toasted bread slices.
5. Keep the tray with the soup bowls in a preheated oven and broil at 230 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit) until the cheese melts. Broiling means keeping the pan or tray beneath the top heating element of the oven.
6. Let cheese melt or become golden. Remove the tray using oven mitts. Carefully remove the soup bowls using oven mitts or oven gloves from the tray.
7. Serve French Onion Soup, hot garnished with some parsley or chives.

Baking Cheese Toasts Separately

1. For baking the cheese toasts separately, top grated gruyere cheese on the toasted baguette slices.
2. Bake at 230 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit) in a preheated oven until the cheese melts.
3. Pour the steaming hot soup in soup mugs or bowls.
4. Place the cheese toasts on the soup and serve straightaway.
5. Garnish with some parsley or chives while serving.