Traditional French Onion Soup

I never thought that I would be welcoming in the cold weather, but here I am, reveling in the little nip in the air. This could be partly due to the hard-wiring in my head that has me instinctively feeling inappropriate if I walk out of the house without a heavy jacket once the calendar reads December. Or it could be due to the excessive (but exciting) holiday decorations strewed about my office building that seem like a heavy dose of snow could really polish off the effect.

But mainly it's because cold weather justifies my love affair with soup. This french onion soup satisfies a craving that you didn't even know you had. It's hearty and rich, and feels like an incredibly decadent way to warm body and soul on a cold, dark night. It only makes four servings, and I can tell you that four servings later, I wish I had more. I plan on making this for friends when they come over - not only because it tastes so good, but it just looks so beautiful when it comes out of the oven! 

(Lesson learned - let this soup cool for a few minutes before serving. It is HOT when it comes out of the oven. We almost had a coup in our house when someone realized his only two options were to burn his tongue or wait for the soup to cool before digging in. Of course, I would never say who...)

Traditional French Onion Soup 

Recipe Adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
3 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
1 quart chicken broth
1 quart beef broth
1 cup red wine
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon parsley flakes
1 teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 thick slices French or Italian bread
6 slices Gruyere or Swiss cheese slices, room temperature
1/2 cup shredded Asiago or mozzarella cheese, room temperature
4 pinches paprika

Directions: 
1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in salt, red onions and sweet onions. Cook 35 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are caramelized and almost syrupy.

2. Mix chicken broth, beef broth, red wine and Worcestershire sauce into pot. Add spices and simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Reduce the heat to low, mix in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep over low heat to stay hot while you prepare the bread.

3. Preheat oven broiler. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 3 minutes, turning once, until well toasted on both sides. Remove from heat; do not turn off broiler.

4. Arrange 4 large oven safe bowls or crocks on a rimmed baking sheet. Fill each bowl 2/3 full with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 slice toasted bread, 1.5 slices Gruyere cheese and 1/4 of the Asiago or mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a little bit of paprika over the top of each one.

5. Broil 5 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. As it softens, the cheese will cascade over the sides of the crock and form a beautifully melted crusty seal. Serve immediately!