Brasseries Le Cozes French Onion Soup Food

THE BEST FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a very large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the onions, bay leaves, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are very soft and light golden-brown, about 1 hour. (The onions will begin to stick to the bottom of the pan and turn brown after about 30 minutes; just keep scraping them up and stirring them into the rest of the onions. If they are browning to quickly, lower the heat.)
• Add the wine to the pot, bring to a simmer and cook until it has almost completely evaporated, about 4 minutes. Add the beef broth and 1 cup of water, bring to a simmer and cook until the flavors come together and the soup is rich, about 45 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Keep the soup warm on a low burner or cool completely and refrigerate to reheat later. (The soup can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 1 month.)
• Preheat the broiler. Place four soup crocks on a rimmed baking sheet and fill them about 3/4 of the way with hot soup. Float a slice of baguette on top of each and cover with 1/2 cup Gruyere. Broil until the Gruyere is golden brown (don't be alarmed if some soup bubbles out), 2 to 3 minutes.

BRASSERIE'S LE COZE'S FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• In a large stockpot over low heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft and golden brown, about 1 hour. Add the white wine and reduce by half. Add the cream and reduce by half.
• Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add sugar and moisten with water and lemon juice. Cook until the sugar melts and becomes a light caramel color. Remove from the heat immediately. Do not allow it to overcook, or it will become bitter. Cool briefly and add the vinegar to the caramel and whisk to combine (if mixture hardens, set it over low heat to liquefy again). Set aside.
• In a separate saucepan over low heat, melt the remaining butter and add the flour. Whisk for 1 to 2 minutes or until flour is absorbed but mixture is still blond-colored. Set aside.
• In a separate saucepan, bring the broth to a boil. Add the flour roux to the stock and cook to combine. Puree with an immersion blender or in a food processor to smooth it to a gravy-like consistency. Add this mixture (called a veloute) to the onions after the cream is reduced. Add the sugar-vinegar mixture (called a gastrique), stirring to incorporate.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. The restaurant serves the soup with grated Gruyere cheese, croutons and green onions, but it is filling enough to serve alone.
• Note: To properly caramelize the onions, allow yourself about one hour. Don't rush it by using too high heat or you could burn the onions. I use a heavy enamel pot for this step.

FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and cook for 10 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Now add the beef broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• When you're ready to eat, preheat the broiler. Arrange the baguette slices on a baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle the slices with the Gruyere and broil until bubbly and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Ladle the soup in bowls and float several of the Gruyere croutons on top.
• Alternative method: Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls into the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese.

CLASSIC FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons oil and butter over medium heat. Add onions; cook and stir until softened, 10-13 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring occasionally, until deep golden brown, 30-40 minutes. Add minced garlic; cook 2 minutes longer., Stir in wine. Bring to a boil; cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add broth, pepper and salt; return to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. , Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°. Place baguette slices on a baking sheet; brush both sides with remaining 3 tablespoons oil. Bake until toasted, 3-5 minutes on each side. Rub toasts with halved garlic. , To serve, place twelve 8-oz. broiler-safe bowls or ramekins on baking sheets; place 2 toasts in each. Ladle with soup; top with cheese. Broil 4 in. from heat until cheese is melted.

FRENCH ONION SOUP: THE COOK'S ILLUSTRATED WAY

Steps:

• For the soup:.
• Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400°. Generously spray inside of heavy-bottomed large (at least 7-quart) Dutch oven with nonstick cooking spray.
• Place butter in pot and add onions and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, covered, 1 hour (onions will be moist and slightly reduced in volume).
• Remove pot from oven and stir onions, scraping bottom and sides of pot. Return pot to oven with lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours longer, stirring onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot after 1 hour.
• Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat.
• Using oven mitts to handle pot, cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until liquid evaporates and onions brown, 15 to 20 minutes, reducing heat to medium if onions are browning too quickly.
• Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until pot bottom is coated with dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary. (Scrape any fond that collects on spoon back into onions.)
• Stir in 1/4 cup water, scraping pot bottom to loosen crust, and cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Repeat process of deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are very dark brown.
• Stir in wine and balsamic vinegar, stirring frequently, until wine evaporates, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in broths, 2 cups water, the thyme, bay leaf and parsley (tied with twine or wrapped in cheese cloth for easy removal from pot) and 1/2 teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot.
• Increase heat to high and bring to simmer.
• Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Remove and discard herbs, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
• For the croutons: While soup simmers, arrange baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet and bake in 400-degree oven until bread is dry, crisp, and golden at edges, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
• To serve: Adjust oven rack 4 to 6 inches from broiler and heat broiler.
• Set heat-safe soup bowls or crocks on rimmed baking sheet and fill each with about 1 1/2 cups soup.
• Top each bowl with two toasted baguette slices (try not to overlap) and divide Swiss cheese slices, laying them in a single layer, if possible, on bread.
• Sprinkle each serving with about 2 tablespoons grated Asiago cheese and broil until well browned and bubbly, 7 to 10 minutes.
• If using regular soup bowls, broil the toasts and the cheese only and then place the toasts on top of the soup.
• Cool 5 minutes and serve.

FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a soup pot and sauté the onions until very soft, at least 20 minutes.
• Add the Cognac and the wine and cook for one minute.
• Add the stock. Simmer, covered, 45 minutes.
• Check the seasonings.
• Ladle into oven-proof soup bowls and set on a baking sheet. Top each with a croûte (roasted Vienna bread).
• Sprinkle the top generously with cheese. Broil in oven until the top is lightly brown, about 2 minutes.

FRENCH ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Melt the butter with the olive oil in a large heavy-based pan. Add the onions and fry with the lid on for 10 mins until soft.
• Sprinkle in the sugar and cook for 20 mins more, stirring frequently, until caramelised. The onions should be really golden, full of flavour and soft when pinched between your fingers. Take care towards the end to ensure that they don't burn.
• Add the garlic cloves for the final few minutes of the onions' cooking time, then sprinkle in the plain flour and stir well.
• Increase the heat and keep stirring as you gradually add the wine, followed by the beef stock. Cover and simmer for 15-20 mins.
• To serve, turn on the grill, and toast the bread. Ladle the soup into heatproof bowls.
• Put a slice or two of toast on top of the bowls of soup, and pile on the gruyère. Grill until melted. Alternatively, you can cook the toasts under the grill, then add them to the soup to serve.

CREAMY ONION SOUP FROM BRASSERIE LE COZE

Steps:

• In a large stockpot over low heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft and golden brown, about 1 hour. Add the white wine and reduce by half. Add the cream and reduce by half.
• Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add sugar and moisten with water and lemon juice. Cook until the sugar melts and becomes a light caramel color. Remove from the heat immediately. Do not allow it to overcook, or it will become bitter. Cool briefly and add the vinegar to the caramel and whisk to combine (if mixture hardens, set it over low heat to liquefy again). Set aside.
• In a separate saucepan over low heat, melt the remaining butter and add the flour. Whisk for 1 to 2 minutes or until flour is absorbed but mixture is still blond-colored. Set aside.
• In a separate saucepan, bring the broth to a boil. Add the flour roux to the stock and cook to combine. Puree with an immersion blender or in a food processor to smooth it to a gravy-like consistency. Add this mixture (called a veloute) to the onions after the cream is reduced. Add the sugar-vinegar mixture (called a gastrique), stirring to incorporate.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. The restaurant serves the soup with grated Gruyere cheese, croutons and green onions, but it is filling enough to serve alone.
• Note: To properly caramelize the onions, allow yourself about one hour. Don't rush it by using too high heat or you could burn the onions.