Julia Child's French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup. Simply put, one of my ultimate favorite soups. I'm the gal that every time I'm at a restaurant that has it listed on the menu, from a fancy sit-down, to a quick lunch spot like Panera, you can bet that 75% of the time I'll be ordering French Onion Soup.  There's just something about this full-flavored, cheesy, dark soup that satisfies me every time.  

I'm very much so looking forward to our trip to France this year, to experience ordering authentic French Onion Soup, paired with some brie as my appetizer, & a nice glass of french wine. For now, I'll continue cooking Ms. Julia Child's French Onion Soup recipe, that comes straight from the culinary streets of Paris.  

In authenticity of true french cuisine, when it comes to French Onion Soup, this recipe is probably one of the best.  Below are the directions, exactly as it comes from Julia Child's cookbook, & then below I have a few ''Notes''.  

She starts with a short prefatory note: 

The onions for an onion soup need a long, slow cooking in butter and oil, then a long, slow simmering in stock for them to develop the deep, rich flavor which characterizes a perfect brew.  You should therefore count on 2 1/2 hours at least from start to finish.  Though the preliminary cooking in butter requires some watching, the actual simmering can proceed almost unattended.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs. or about 5 cups of thinly sliced yellow onions
3 T butter
1 T vegetable oil
A heavy-bottomed, 4 quart covered saucepan
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. sugar
3 T flour
2 quarts boiling brown stock, canned beef bouillon, or 1 quart of boiling water and 1 quart of stock or bouillon.
1/2 cup dry white wine or dry white vermouth
Salt and pepper to taste
3 T cognac
Rounds of hard-toasted French bread (see recipe following)
1 to 2 cups grated Swiss or Parmesan cheese

CROUTES — HARD-TOASTED FRENCH BREAD:
12 to 16 slices of French bread, cut 3/4 to 1 inch thick
Olive oil or beef drippings
A cut clove of garlic

PROCEDURE FOR THE SOUP:

Cook the onions slowly with the butter and oil in a covered saucepan for 15 minutes.

Uncover, raise heat to moderate and stir in the salt and sugar.  Cook for 30 to 40 minutes stirring frequently, until the onions have turned an even, deep golden brown.  Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 3 minutes.

Off heat, blend in the boiling liquid.  Add the wine and season to taste.  Simmer partially covered for 30 to 40 minutes or more, skimming occasionally.  Correct seasoning.

Set aside uncovered until ready to serve.  Then reheat to the simmer.

Just before serving, stir in the cognac.  Pour into a soup tureen or soup cups over the rounds of bread and pass the cheese separately.

PROCEDURE TO MAKE THE CROUTES:

Place the bread in one layer in a roasting pan and bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for about half an hour, until it is thoroughly dried out and lightly browned.

Halfway through the baking, each side may be basted with a teaspoon of olive oil or beef drippings; and after baking, each piece may be rubbed with cut garlic.

COLLEEN'S NOTES:

#1: I only use 3.5-4 cups of onions instead of the 5 cups.   When I use the smaller quantity the soup is still very "oniony" with a lot of consistency of onions & not much broth.  If you want more broth and less onions, I would even suggest just 3 cups of onions instead of the 5. Authentic French Onion Soup is very thick with onions in every bite, that's why Julia's recipe calls for 5 cups. The recipe & pictures below, I used 4 cups of diced onions.

#2: Unlike Julia, once the soup is complete, I add the croutons, top each oven-safe bowl with freshly grated parmesan cheese, then cook in the oven for 8-10 minutes at 375 F. This allows the cheese to thoroughly melt.  Julia's recipe, just has fresh cheese grated on the top and then eaten without the additional heating of the cheese in the oven.  I suppose it's personal preference, but I love the warm cheese topping once it's removed from the oven.

I suggest pairing some French Macaroons with dinner, as a dessert course.