A delicious taste of France in early spring and a great way to use up onions, this soup will keep well in the fridge for up to 2 days and is great for weekend lunch or to take to work and reheat.
Ingredients: for 4 portions
1kg brown onions, finely sliced
50g butter
3 tbsp dry sherry
1.2 litres beef stock
1 baguette, sliced
1 garlic clove
extra virgin olive oil
100g mature cheddar or gruyere cheese, grated
How to make French onion soup… WASH YOUR HANDS
- Finely slice the onions, or use a food processor if you have one.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan, over a low heat, once the butter has melted, add the onions, stir to coat the onions with the butter and set over a low heat to cook very gently until they are soft, not browned. This should take 15-20 minutes.
- Turn up the heat slightly and cook the onion until it becomes dark, sticky and caramelized, stir it occasionally to prevent it sticking.
- Add the sherry and simmer for 2-3 minutes, stirring to loosen all the lovely sticky brown caramelisation on the bottom of the pan. Add the stock, bring to the boil, season and simmer for 10 minutes. Tasting to make sure that the seasoning is correct, if not add more salt or black pepper.
- While the soup is cooking slice the baguette, toast the slices then rub each slice with the garlic clove, drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with grated cheese. Place under the grill and toast until golden and bubbling. Serve on top of the soup