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French Onion Soup (Jim's Best)

French Onion Soup (Jim's Best) is built on Soup, Unsalted Butter Cut Into, Water Extra For Deglazing, Dry Sherry, and Low Sodium Chicken Broth. Serves 6. Scale it up or down for the number of people at the table.

Ingredients

• Soup
• 3 tbsp
• 2 cup
• 1/2 cup
• 4 cup
• 2 cup
• 6
• 1
• 1
• 8 oz

Method (preview)

1. 1

   Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and heat oven to 400F.

2. 2

   Generously spray inside of heavy-bottomed large (at least 7-quart)

3. 3

   Dutch oven with nonstick cooking spray.

4. 4

   Place butter in pot and add onions and 1 teaspoon salt.

5. 5

   Cook, covered, 1 hour (onions will be moist and slightly reduced in volume).

6. 6

   Remove pot from oven and stir onions, scraping bottom and sides of pot.

7. 7

   Return pot into the 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 one hour.

8. 8

   Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high stove top burner.

9. 9

   Using oven mitt 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.

10. 10

    Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until pot bottom is coated with dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary.

11. 11

    Scrape any fond that collects on spoon back into onions.

12. 12

    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.

13. 13

    Repeat process of deglazing two or three more times, until onions are very dark brown.

14. 14

    Stir in sherry and cook, stirring frequently, until sherry evaporates, about five minutes.

15. 15

    Stir in broths, 2 cups water, thyme, bay leaf and 1/2 teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of brown crust on the bottom and sides of pot.

16. 16

    Increase heat to high and bring to simmer.

17. 17

    Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 30 minutes.

18. 18

    Remove and discard herbs and season with salt and pepper to taste.

19. 19

    While soup simmers, arrange baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet and bake in 400F oven until bread is dry, crisp and golden at edges, about 10 minutes.

20. 20

    Set aside.

21. 21

    To Serve

22. 22

    Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler.

23. 23

    Set individual broiler safe crocks on baking sheet and fill each with about 1 3/4 cups soup.

24. 24

    Top each bowl with 1 to 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with gruyere.

25. 25

    Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly around edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

26. 26

    Serves six.

27. 27

    Recipe from Jim H. MC format by Hallie. Untried.

28. 28

    Contributed to the FareShare Gazette by Hallie; 31 May 2010. www.fareshare.net