French Onion Soup

This is a soup that I absolutely love. I've cooked a couple different types of soups over the last couple months so I thought I was ready to make my first French Onion Soup. This is one of Tyler Florence's recipes that I found on the Food Network website. I decided to make this recipe vegetarian by using vegetable broth instead of beef broth. I was worried that removing the beef broth flavor would dramatically alter the taste of the soup. The flavor turned out absolutely amazing! I used Petite Sirah from Trader Joe's in the soup and it added a nice rich flavor. This recipe will provide about 6 servings and is a perfect choice for a dinner party. Everyone will absolutely love it! 

Recipe:

½ cup unsalted butter

4 onions, sliced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 bay leaves

2 fresh thyme sprigs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup red wine, about ½ bottle

3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 quarts beef broth

1 baguette, sliced

½ pound grated Gruyere

1. Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes.
2. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
3. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste.
4. Now add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
5. Alternative method: Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls into the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese.

A couple notes:

I substituted vegetable broth for beef broth to make this a vegetarian dish.

I used a whole wheat baguette for a hearty texture in the soup.

It takes a few minutes longer for the wine to evaporate than the recipe says but the flavor is worth the wait.

Next time I make this recipe (which will be very soon) I will make croutons to put on top of the soup instead of the slice of bread. Instructions for that method are here:

When you're ready to eat, preheat the broiler. Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle the slices with the Gruyere and broil until bubbly and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Ladle the soup in bowls and float several of the Gruyere croutons on top.

Enjoy!