Homemade French Onion Soup

This is one of my favorite things to make on a cold & snowy day...especially in the crock pot.  The house is FILLED with the delicious aroma of beef broth and onions, and it makes anyone who walks into our house instantly hungry.  (Hee hee!) This is not a difficult recipe, just time-intensive, especially since you'll want it to cook for as long as possible in order for the flavors to meld perfectly.  ;)

I hope you like it...

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Ingredients:
2-3 medium white onions
52 oz (2-26 oz containers) Beef Cooking stock
3 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp course ground black pepper
1 to 1½ Tbsp Kosher salt, depending on taste
4 C water
1 loaf French Bread
2-3 C shredded Gruyere cheese
2-3 C shredded Swiss cheese
6-8 slices of Swiss cheese

Advanced Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375°F.  Cut French bread loaf into 1-in slices.  Toast 4-6 slices (depending on thickness of the bread) in pre-heated oven for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown.  Remove and set aside.

Soup Directions:
Chop onions into even quarter slices. Place in a medium to large sauce pan.  Add stock, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, pepper, salt, and water.  Heat on high.  When liquid comes to a boil, cover.  Turn heat down to medium-high and let simmer for 1-2 hours. After 1 hour, you will need to add 1-2 C more water, depending on evaporation rate.  Heat soup until onions are no longer firm but are translucent and limp. Remove from heat.

Preheat oven to 425°F.  In 2 large oven- and broiler-safe ceramic bowls, place 2-3 slices toasted French bread slices. Ladle soup over slices, filling about ¾ full. add 1 C shredded Swiss, then 1 C shredded Gruyere, add one more ladle of soup, then top off with 3-4 Swiss slices, ensuring top is completely covered.  Place bowls on jelly roll pan or some other pan with shallow sides, then place pan in pre-heated oven.  Let bake for 10 minutes, then turn broiler on low. Broil for 5 more minutes, or until cheese top is bubbly and turns a golden brown. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes, then serve.  Be careful, as soup will be EXTREMELY hot.

*This soup can also be made in a slow cooker. Add all ingredients into pot, cover, and set temp to high.  Let cook 6-8 hours.  Follow the rest of the directions for placing in bowls.

Serves 3-4 people

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GBAdams
10/31/2012