Onion Soup Gratinee

Onion soup with toasty, melty cheese and garlic croutons, comfort food doesn’t get much better than this!

  • 2 ponds yellow onions thinly sliced
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 litres beef broth (can be made by dissolving 2 Knorr beef stock cubes)
  • 1 1/2 cup dry sherry or 3 cups dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup Cognac, brandy or port wine
  • Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
  • one loaf of French bread sliced
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 cloves chopped garlic
  • 2 cups combination of grated Gruyere (or some other Swiss cheese) and Parmesan cheese

In a large saucepan heat the butter and oil and add the onions. Cover and sweat the onions on low heat for about 15 minutes or until translucent, stirring occasionally. Sweating the onions allows you to cook them longer without burning or browning them too much. Remove the lid, season with salt and pepper and increase the heat slightly to medium-low. Cook the onions for another 30 minutes until they are nice and golden coloured. Add the flour and cook for another 5 minutes stirring often. Stir in the sherry or white wine giving it a minute or so to cook off some of the alcohol and then add the hot broth. Simmer gently for 30 to 40 minutes. Adjust the seasoning if needed with salt and pepper and add the brandy or port.

For the garlic croutons, add the chopped garlic to the olive oil. Arrange the bread slices on a baking tray and place in a 350 F oven. Bake for 10-15 minutes, remove from the oven and brush both sides with the oil and dot with the chopped garlic. Return to the oven to brown for another 5-10 minutes.

Ladle the soup into heated bowls and float the croutons on top. Cover with the grated cheese and grill under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese is toasty on top.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.