Do you have favorite dishes that come from very specific places? Like maybe the donuts from the family run bakery in the next town over from where you grew up? Or the chewy chocolate oatmeal cherry cookies that one café across town has. Or the french fries or chopped salad that you MUST order if you go to that one restaurant. (obviously I could play this game for days).
Anyways- Every time I am in New York I really try hard to go Pastis and mow down on French Onion Soup. Stringy, gooey stinky Gruyere cheese (lots of it!) and toasty rustic bread and brothy, oniony soup all sopped up with more bread. And in my typical fashion I hit Pastis last week wearing an elastic waste band all ready to pull up to the bread basket. Then I got the menu. My panicky eyes darted around, searching over and over again. They were still only serving breakfast. I was left high and dry.
I couldn’t shake my craving. I just couldn’t. So I came home and made this soup. Perfect for the week before Christmas after long days of work and school and everything else. Comfort Food- which everyone could use right now.
To make this soup, this is what you do:
In a large heavy pot, melt the butter and add the onions. Sprinkle some salt over the onions and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes.
Add the red wine and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
Add the broth and the thyme and put a lid on the pot. Turn the heat to low and simmer 60-120 minutes.
When the soup is finished simmering, season to taste with Kosher salt and black pepper.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the bread slices on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until golden- about 5-7 minutes. Take the garlic clove and rub it over the top of each piece of toast. When you remove the toast, increase the oven to broil.
Ladle the soup into oven proof bowls.
Top the bowls with pieces of the toast (you may have to cut some of them to fit).
Top the toasts with generous amounts of the gruyere cheese and a little bit of fresh thyme.
Place the bowls of soup on a sheet pan and broil for a couple minutes until golden and bubbly!
Recipe: French Onion Soup
Ingredients
- -3 Tablespoons butter
- -6 large yellow onions thinly sliced
- -2 cups red wine
- -8 cups beef broth
- -1 sprig fresh thyme
- -Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- -1 loaf rustic bread, cut into thick slices
- -3 tablespoons olive oil
- -1garlic clove
- -8 ounces gruyere, finely shredded
Instructions
- 1. In a large heavy pot, melt the butter and add the onions. Sprinkle some salt over the onions and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes.
- 2. Add the red wine and scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
- 3. Add the broth and the thyme and put a lid on the pot. Turn the heat to low and simmer 60-120 minutes.
- 4. Season to taste with Kosher salt and black pepper.
- 5. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the bread slices on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil. Bake until golden- about 5-7 minutes. Take the garlic clove and rub it over the top of each piece of toast.
- 6. Ladle the soup into oven proof bowls.
Preparation time: 20 minute(s)
Cooking time: 1 hour(s) 20 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 8
Print Recipe
This soup is perfect rustic charm!
Uh-mazing!! Love this!
Thank You Katrina!
this is one of my all time favorite soups – and you make it look so easy. This may have to be part of our new years eve food extravaganza!
French onion soup is one of my FAVORITE soups! I love that huge mound of cheese on top of the bread to give that super crusty and cheesy top! This looks delicious & I love that it doesn’t take ages to make!
Yes- it is like the fast and easy version covered in a mountain of melted cheese. hard to beat 🙂
Oh. OHHHHHHH I can’t even stand it. I’m moving into your mouth.
gross Bev!!! How bout my guestroom instead…
I love French Onion soup. This would be easy to turn into a veg version. And you’re so right, perfect for these days. Wouldn’t you just love to send all of Newtown a big bowl of comfort?
Yes Vicki. I really, really would.
I’m ready to cook! Is the bread recipe anywhere on your site?
Barb- I haven’t gone down the crazy bird path of baking my own artisanal rustic french breads yet!!
When I first started going to NYC as an adult, I discovered Takashimaya on Fifth Avenue. An outpost of a Japanese department store, it was wonderfully strange. Unfortunately they closed a few years ago, but I still remember the tea room in the basement. It was a go-to place every trip, kind of like how you feel about Pastis. My husband and I always have lunch (never dinner) at the Morrell Restaurant and Wine Bar in Rockefeller Plaza. Great people watching spot.
A good recipe for French onion soup like this one is a necessary part of any cook’s repertoire. Plus, it’s so retro it’s cool again.
Kelley- I remember Takashimaya!! I never went to the basement- but the store was so beautiful. I guess I hadn’t realized that it closed? I have a list as long as my arm about my “places”! I can never help myself. Maybe some day I will write it down 🙂
The last time we visited Takashimaya was in 2005, so I think it closed in 2006. Now I have to take my tea at the St. Regis hotel next door (so sad, right?)
yes. But the St Regis is lovely too.
Hi there. The current Food on Friday is all about onions! So it would be great if you linked this in. This is the link . Wishing you very happy Holidays!
Oh – We made this tonight and it was lovely – My new favorite soup. Thanks for the wonderful pictures and step by step directions.
oh good Julie!! thank you so much- I am so happy you like it!
I love french onion soup and like you I one day I was really craving it so I decided to make it for my family and me of course. I made it similar to yours, except I didn’t use wine but next time I’ll have to try yours. It looks delicious! Now I want some. Lol
Where did you find those bowls?? I have been searching high and low for something like that!
Can you tell me what type of soup bowls those are?
Do you know where I can get LARGE French onion soup bowls with lids? All I can find are the small ones! What you show here looks great, but… where can I get them?
I got these at Sur La Table!