French Onion Soup with Homemade Beef Stock

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Description

While making the beef stock from scratch is time consuming, it really makes for a fabulous soup! Of course you can always buy beef stock too (if you are in a bit of a hurry)! This serves 4 as a main course with crunchy French bread and a simple side salad (try mixing tender butter lettuce, sweet green and red leaf lettuce, some crunchy iceberg, confettied light green cabbage and grated carrot with candied pecans and a light balsamic or Italian dressing).

Ingredients

  • 12 cups water
  • 1 pound beef short ribs
  • 3 parsnips, peeled and cubed
  • 3 onions, coarsely chopped
  • 2 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 2 stalks celery with leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
  • ¼ cup butter
  • 4 large onions, thinly sliced
  • 3 cloves garlic, smashed
  • ¼ cup flour, or more as needed
  • 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, or to taste
  • ¼ cup dry white wine
  • 2 tablespoons dry sherry
  • 1 dash hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco®), or to taste
  • 4 thick slices French bread
  • basil and garlic-flavored olive oil for brushing
  • 2 cups grated Gruyere cheese
  • 1 pinch sea salt to taste

Instructions

  1. Place water
  2. beef ribs
  3. parsnips
  4. onions
  5. carrots
  6. celery
  7. bay leaves
  8. 1 teaspoon salt
  9. 1 teaspoon black pepper
  10. and 1 tablespoon fresh thyme into a large soup pot over medium heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook
  11. skimming and discarding foam that forms on top of broth
  12. until broth is a rich brown color
  13. 5 to 6 hours. (Broth may also be made in a slow cooker.) Strain broth
  14. discard ribs and vegetables
  15. and refrigerate extra broth.
  16. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet or cast iron pan over medium-low heat. Cook onions and garlic until caramelized and brown
  17. about 30 minutes.
  18. Mix flour
  19. herbes de Provence
  20. paprika
  21. and garlic powder together in a bowl; sprinkle over browned onions. Cook and stir 5 minutes; season with salt and black pepper. Stir in parsley and 1 teaspoon thyme.
  22. Pour in 4 cups beef broth
  23. white wine
  24. sherry
  25. and hot pepper sauce; simmer until flavors have blended and soup has thickened
  26. about 15 minutes. (More time doesn’t hurt.)
  27. Preheat the oven broiler about 15 minutes before serving time. Place a rack about 6 inches from the heat source.
  28. Brush slices of French bread with flavored olive oil. Toast under the preheated broiler until well-browned on each side
  29. 1 to 2 minutes per side. Ladle soup into oven-proof soup bowls; place a toasted bread slice on top of each bowl. Sprinkle each bread slice evenly with Gruyère cheese.
  30. Place the filled soup bowls under the broiler until cheese is melted
  31. bubbly
  32. and browned
  33. 2 to 4 minutes.

Cook Time: 6 hrs 15 mins

Total Time: 6 hrs 15 mins

Servings: 4

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