Re: Soup!
SAGE! Next time I make my Non-Campbell's Mushroom Soup, it will so totally have sage in it! Thanks, lisarea!
Imna get in too-much-posting trouble too, because the duck soup reminded me of leftovers, and leftovers reminded me of this. It is a little tricky, kinda time-consuming and very, very delicious. Make too much of it, because tomorrow you are going to roast a chicken. (Or beef, or pork. More on that later.) Have this on Saturday, served with a huge leafy salad, and the roast on Sunday.
I will not call this "French" onion soup, because the recipe would probably make French onion soup purists faint dead away. But onion soup it certainly is, and if you're not serving purists you can get away with calling it French. (I'm sorry you can't have this at your house, lisarea; come over sometime and I'll make it for you.)
Onion Soup
Half a stick of unsalted butter
3 large red onions (must be red -- not yellow or white)
1 cup decent dry red wine
1 carton chicken broth
Bay leaf
Thyme
S&P
Crusty bread, like levain
Gruyere
Parmesan
Special equipment: a heavy, nonreactive kettle -- enameled cast iron is perfect
Roughly chop the onions (a food processor is ideal for this.) Melt butter in bottom of kettle over medium-low heat and add onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are limp and transparent. Then kick heat up to medium-high and stir persistently until onions begin to brown. This is a bit touchy. You want the bottom of the kettle to achieve a very dark-brown coating, and you want the onions themselves to be thoroughly browned, but you don't want to burn them. If their edges get black and start to frizzle, you've gone too far. Still: very dark brown. You really must stir constantly. This takes about 15 minutes.
Add red wine and cook, stirring, until liquid evaporates. Add chicken broth and herbs and simmer for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, make croutons: cut thick slices of bread and toast them with a layer of Gruyere on top and a thick grating of Parmesan on top of that.
Fish bay leaf out of soup, correct seasoning, and serve in bowls with croutons floating on top. Ignore people who say you should bake the croutons on top of the soup; this always makes a nasty soggy mess.
As for the roast part: this soup is the base for the best gravy in the world. The Platonic ideal of gravies, the kind of gravy people who dream about gravy dream about. (I am aware that I may be the only person alive who dreams about gravy, but still.) You roast your roast, then pour the fat out of the pan and brown some flour in the drippings as usual for gravy, but instead of stock or other liquid use leftover onion soup. You will not be sorry. There must be mashed potatoes to smoosh the gravy into.
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