French Onion Soup with Parmesan Herb Crisp

Last weekend while we were wine tasting we tried a wonderful white wine from Sugarleaf Vineyards. The 2008 Monticello Petit Manseng was absolutely delicious. We were told that it was served at the White House once, and they happened to have a framed copy of the menu. I was curious what they had paired it with so I took a look. French onion soup! Inspired choice. I can see how they would pair well together. We bought a bottle and I decided that I must make the soup to go with it. Kelly the Kitchen Kop had a recipe  (you should look at hers, too!) that looked good to me but I wanted to make a few changes. I like onions (and she does not!) so I added much more. I also like my soups to cook low and slow, so I decided to make it the night before and let it simmer in the crock pot all night. I made a few more small changes due to what I had on hand and my taste preferences. Using homemade broth made a huge difference. I do not think this soup would have been half as good without that rich and delicious broth I made from the short ribs.My husband was blown away by this delicious soup. It was so good that the poor guy burned his tongue eating it because he did not want to wait for it to cool off!

Continue reading after the jump...


French Onion Soup with Parmesan Herb Crisp:

For the Soup:

• 5 Pounds of Sweet Yellow Onions
• 8 Cups of Homemade Beef Stock
• 2 Cups of Homemade Chicken Stock
• 1 1/2 Cups of Red Wine
• 3 Tablespoons of Butter
• 1 Tablespoon of Coconut Oil
• 1 Clove of Garlic (minced)
• 2 Teaspoons of Sea Salt (Please add slowly, depending on how salty your stock is this could change)
• 1 Teaspoon of Thyme
• 1/4 Teaspoon of White Pepper
• 1/4 Teaspoon All Purpose Seasoning

For the Parmesan Herb Crisp:

• 1/2 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 Cup Freshly Grated Romano Cheese
• 1/2 Teaspoon All Purpose Seasoning

Provolone Cheese For Topping (optional)


Method:

Place the crock pot on high heat. Add all of the broth. Then, in a large pot melt the butter and coconut oil. Add the garlic. Brown Slightly.

Cut all of the onions into thin slices. Add to the pot. Turn up to high heat.

Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions start getting brown.

Turn the heat down to medium. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally.

Onions will be finished when they are browned and reduced (as shown below).

Take the onions out of the pan and place into the crock pot. At this point you can turn the crock pot down to its lowest setting (mine is keep warm).

In the pot use the red wine to deglaze the pan. Bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for a few minutes.

Add the wine from the deglazed pot to the crock pot. Stir. Leave overnight (if you are doing this during the day I would say 4-6 hours on low).

Good Morning! Here is what our soup looks like. Notice how much it has darkened. Beautiful!

Taste. Add spices. Continue to simmer for an hour or so.

To make the crisps, place cheese and herbs in a bowl and mix.

Take out a silpat or parchment paper (you don't want it to stick) and spoon circles on top.

Place in a preheated oven to 350 degrees. Mine took 11 minutes. Check often, you do not want them to burn.

Allow to cool and then remove from the sheet.

Take the finished soup and put into individual oven safe bowls.

Thinly slice provolone cheese and place on top. Into the oven until melted.

Take it out of the oven when the cheese is melted.

Garnish with the crisp. You can put it right on top or place it on the side.

Serve and Enjoy- and try not to burn your tongue!

I submitted this recipe to Real Food Wednesdays, Foodie Friday and Fight Back Friday - check them out for other great recipes from other food bloggers.

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