I fell in love with french onion soup when I was very young, maybe six or seven. My father had a good job. The job allowed my mother to stay at home and raise me until the age of seven or so, which means, perhaps, that I fell in love with it at four or five. I fell in love with many other things that young including enchiladas, seafood fettucini, prawns, flan and hated many things including pizza. I feared pizza. I still like all those foods, but I still love french onion soup.
I remember eating it once in a restaurant at a large, round table in what I can only imagine I would have described as opulence if the word had been a part of my lexicon, but it wasn’t. Everything had a warm shine, the ceiling was high above, my parents were young and happy, others were present with kind smiles, perhaps friends or family, and we were eating well. There were cloth napkins and table cloths, soft music, multiple glasses and plates, waiters, and soft pleasant discourse. I, for some reason, had been given a copy of the menu and had selected my meal, french onion soup. I suspect the cheese sounded especially appealing. Among the adults, there was some concern that a person of my age wouldn’t appreciate it, but, eventually, they deferred to me. I loved it. Cheese melted atop crusty bread floating over a rich brown soup with the deep flavors of something remote and wonderful was heaven, joy.
As a child, I only ate it once or twice thereafter, and, now as an adult, rarely pass up the opportunity to eat it, which is rare in and of itself. I’ve learned since then that the taste I love and long for was given a name, umami. It is that savory flavor that comes from the long, low heat baking of meat or vegetable leaving glassy, liquid drippings in the bottom of pans to be deglazed by wine or stocks, in miso soup. I have always loved gravies and glaces made from the drippings of meat and often sample the drippings when no one is looking. It has a quality and depth that I can’t quite describe, but I favor it even over sweetness.
In traditional french onion soup a brown stock is used. The stock begins by roasting meat and bones in an oven either for 30-40 minutes at a higher temperature or all day at a much lower temperature. The roasting pan is deglazed and the bones and meat go into a big pot with the water and vegetables for stock. This recipe, however, is lacto-vegetarian or vegetarian or even vegan, if olive oil substitutes for butter, and uses a mushroom stock base.
The deep brown color and umami flavor does not just come from the stock but also from the caramelized onions, which only take on a deep color after 30-50 minutes or so of cooking over low heat with butter. While this isn’t exactly the same as the traditional recipe, I do think it holds its own and enjoy it greatly on a cold winter day such as today when the snow drifts down in soft flurries muting the world and softening the city’s harsher lines.
Ingredients
32 oz. mushroom broth
4-8 oz red wine
1 1/2 lbs onions, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 bay leaves
1/4 c butter
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp flour
2-3 3/4-1 in. slices of a sturdy baguette per person
olive oil
swiss cheese and parmigiano reggiano, thinly sliced
Preheat oven to 425° and brush both sides of baguette slices with olive oil. When oven is preheated, place baguettes in oven on rack for 5 minutes. Remove and dress with alternating layers of cheese until there is a satisfactory amount of cheese.
Over medium heat, melt butter and stir in sugar in a 4 quart pot. Add onions and cook until dark brown, which should take 30-40 minutes. When onions are cooked about half way, add garlic. After the onions reach a dark, reddish brown, add flour until thoroughly mixed in. Then, add mushroom stock a half cup at a time. Deglaze as you add the broth by gently rubbing your spoon or spatula over the bottom to lift and dissolve the drippings from the pan. When all the drippings have been removed, add remainder of stock and red wine. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
Place baguette slices with cheese in the oven and bake until cheese begins to melt and bubble. Ladle soup into individual bowls and float the cheesy baguette slices on top of the soup and serve. Serves 4-6 depending on serving size.
Enjoy!