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In on September 19, 2015 with No Comments

French Onion Soup

Soup is probably one of my most favorite things to make, and French onion soup is one of the best. It’s easy to make, and I cook it on low in the crockpot for several hours until ready to finish in the oven and serve.

I got this recipe from my Dad. Years ago when I was in grade school we took a vacation to Canada and ended up eating dinner in a restaurant in the old section of Montreal. As I remember, Dad loved the French onion soup so much he wrote to Bon Appetit to get the recipe, and I’ve used it ever since.

There are hundreds of recipes out there for French onion soup. This one is very basic and simple, but it’s absolutely delicious.

 

 

French Onion Soup

3 large sweet white onions, thinly sliced
8 cups beef broth (homemade is best or use a good quality beef cooking stock)
1 stick butter (not margarine)
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3 cup dry vermouth
French bread
Grated Gruyere cheese

In a crockpot, add the beef broth, and turn the crockpot to low.

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced onions, and cook slowly to caramelize the onions, stirring occasionally. You want to develop the flavors and sweetness of the onions, but you don’t want them to overbrown.

When the onions are nicely caramelized, add salt and pepper to taste and the sugar to the onions. Stir until well combined. Add the flour to the onion mixture, and cook until the flour is nicely browned (as if making a roux).

Add the dry vermouth, and stir until the liquid is evaporated.

Add the onion mixture to the beef broth in the crockpot, scraping everything from the pan. Cook on low for 5-6 hours.

When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Ladle the soup into ovenproof individual serving crocks. Place a slice of French bread on top of the soup, and cover the top of the bread with the grated Gruyere cheese. Place the soup crocks into the oven, and bake for approximately 7 minutes, or until the cheese is browned and bubbly.

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In , on July 16, 2014 with 2 Comments

Canniing 101: Sweet Onion Relish….AKA Rosemary Onion Confit

I’ve spent the winter and spring looking at all kinds of canning, pickling, and preserving cookbooks, posts on Pinterest, and various canning websites looking for new recipes to try out. I’ve pretty much got the basics down of what we like to eat, but sometimes it gets boring and predictable. I like to cook, and I love trying new recipes for just about anything. When Kevin told me the onions in the garden just weren’t going to keep as we’d like (too much water all spring), while he started pulling the onions, I went in search of a recipe to use onions in.

I came across Pickles & Relishes:  From Apples to Zucchini by Andrea Chapman on my Scribd subscription. If you don’t subscribe to Scribd, you can find her book here on Amazon  I’ve found quite a few recipes in her book that I want to try out, especially the 1-jar pickle recipes, just in case a recipe turns out to be one we don’t care for, but after trying this Rosemary Onion Confit, I have a feeling all the recipes in her book are going to be great.

I did make a few modifications to her recipe, as I usually do, but I did not change the vinegar amount. That is what will be preserving the onions, so I didn’t mess with it. I wasn’t sure as it was cooking if it would be something my family would like or not, but once everything pulled together and I was ladling it into jars, I took a taste, and man was it good! Here’s the recipe, with my modifications:

 

Sweet Onion Relish

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 pounds onions, chopped
1 cup cider vinegar, or wine vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar…5% acidity)
3/4 cup sugar
1 large sprig fresh rosemary
1/2 tablespoon soy sauce (Andrea’s recipe called for 1 tablespoon or to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper (a few turns on the grinder…to taste)

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions. Decrease the heat to low and stir to coat the onions with the oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent and soft, about 30 minutes.

 

Stir in the cider vinegar, sugar, rosemary, soy sauce, and pepper. Simmer for another 5 minutes.

 

 

Pack the onion mixture into clean, hot half-pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove any air bubbles and seal.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Let the jars stand undisturbed for 12 hours. Do not open for at least 6 weeks to allow the flavors to develop.

Yield:  Approximately 4 half-pints

Note:  I tasted the relish after I ladled it into the jars, and what was left in the bottom of the pan was awesome. I can’t wait for 6 weeks to pass so I can have some with a grilled steak!

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