BEST SOUP YET

For the last two weeks, we've been having bitter cold weather, and I was suffering from my post-Holiday-Hamilton Funk.

At some point, I decided to just hunker down and make soup....

AND I'VE BEEN GOING STIR-SOUP-CRAZY. Holy Cow...

I've made Chicken Tortilla soup, Italian Wedding Soup, Chicken Noodle soup, Chili, Sausage and cabbage soup, and yesterday -- a gigantic pot of French Onion Soup. Which was, quite possibly, the BEST SOUP YET...

Here's the thing...my brother-in-law (Dean, married to my sister Ronda) is an avid gardener. Every summer, he has a big truck garden.  Selling produce at the summer Farmer Markets is his retirement hobby. (one of his many)

The other day, Ronda and Dean invited us over for lunch (venison burgers)...and, as we were leaving, Dean gave us a huge bag of his onions...which have been carefully wrapped and stored since harvest -- but they are starting to sprout.

Given my current soupy state of mind -- the minute I got home, I started to peel and slice the onions...

French Onion Soup is never going to be the quickest soup to make...but, if you get it right, it really is a SPECTACULAR, elegant dish...

French Onion Soup

Peel and slice 12 onions (I'm not kidding -- it takes a LOT of onions). Put 2 tbl butter and 1 tbl. veg oil in a heavy pan...and start to saute the onions. After they get going, turn the heat down to medium low...and just let them cook...you will pay attention, and stir and turn the onions...until they cook down to 1/3 their original volume, and have turned a beautiful, sweet, caramelized golden brown...

Yes, that takes some time. But it's not HARD to do, y'know? You just have to stay in the kitchen area and pay attention...but cooking down the onions is the step that cannot be rushed. There is no shortcut to caramelized onions...and that's what gives the soup the deep sweet flavor...

But, now -- hey -- YOUR WORK IS DONE...

I had about two cups of caramelized onions...so I added 5 cups of beef stock (I used soup base), and let the soup simmer and get hot.

Meanwhile -- prepare your cheesy toppers!! I had some stale Italian bread in the freezer...so I sliced four thick slices, and buttered both sides of the bread. Then, I GRILLED the bread (you can use your iron skillet to do this)...I wanted a brown crust on both sides of the bread.

Here's the thing I JUST FIGURED OUT...

Heat the soup in it's pan, on top of the stove...
Put ONLY THE BREAD into the oven, topped with loads of shredded cheese (I used Gouda, Pepper Jack and Mozzarella)...broil until the cheese is melted and gooey...

THEN...to serve, you simply ladle the soup into the bowls, and float the cheesy toast on top!!

OH MY GOD...

Really?? Really, Rita? That's news to you? Heating the soup and the bread separately? That took you 30 years to figure out??

Yep. And that's the truth. Every other time I tried to make this dish, I put the soup into the bowls, then the bread on top, then the cheese -- and put the bowls on a cookie sheet, and stuck the whole pan into my oven...

WHAT A MESS...and before the cheese got melted, the bread was soggy...

Yep. I have figured this thing out...and it was SO DELICIOUS, I DIDN'T TAKE A SINGLE PICTURE..

John said it was the best French Onion Soup he ever ate!

This internet photo is pretty close...but my dish had WAY MORE CHEESE....