Wood’s Version of French Onion Soup
Step by Step
1 tbsp brown sugar
4 gloves of garlic minced
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
3 large onions sliced
Sauté the onions in the garlic and oil at low heat for a long time (60 minutes)
Add the garlic & brown sugar and continue cooking and stirring (10 minutes)
4 tbsp cognac or brandy
4 tbsp red wine
Ground pepper (as much as you want, I use quite a bit)
Add cognac & wine to onions continue to simmer for 10 more minutes and then add
1.2 litres of vegetable, chicken or beef stock
1 tsp fresh or dried thyme or herbs de province (I prefer herbs de province)
Continue to simmer until some of the liquid is reduced
There are two ways to go from here:
Thick slices of mozzarella or gruyere
If you have traditional onion soup bowls, put your soup in and top with a thick baguette topped with a thick slice of the mozzarella or gruyere and under the broiler.
Finely shredded parmesan or reggiano parmesan 1 tbsp per serving
When you take the bowls from the oven sprinkle the parm or reggiano over the top.
OR, IF YOU DON’T HAVE TRAD. ONION SOUP BOWLS AND/OR WANT A LARGE SERVING IN REGULAR SOUP BOWLS
Put the slices of baguette topped with cheese under the broiler on an oiled flat pan and transfer with a spatula to the soup bowls
I don’t use salt and find the shredded parm gives it that little extra tang.
SOME OBSERVATIONS:
Most women I know like garlic more than most men I know. I used 8 cloves and nobody complained.
This recipe is a bit sweeter because of the brown sugar and wine.
If you like the broth dark, use beef stock and you can substitute molasses for the brown sugar.