French Onion Soup
An easy French onion soup of sauteed onions, beef bouillon and Bovril, reduced by half and baked in crocks under toasted French bread and melted mozzarella. Serves 4.
From the recipe book of Sandra Mills, a Le Cordon Bleu-trained cook in our family.
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Sandra Mills's French onion soup has a smart shortcut: a couple of spoonfuls of Bovril, a concentrated beef extract, gives canned beef bouillon a deep, long-simmered flavor. The soup simmers until reduced by about half, then bakes in crocks under toasted French bread and melted cheese.
Her tip: "I make the soup early in the day. I assemble it and bake it when I am ready to serve it." Starting the crocks in a cold oven at a low 250°F melts the cheese gently without cracking the crocks.
Ingredients
Soup
- 2 large onions
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons of Bovril
- 2 cans of Campbell's beef bullion
- 1 can of water
To serve
- 4 slices toasted French bread
- Shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Saute the onions. Thinly slice the onions and saute them in the butter in a heavy-duty soup pot.
- Add the Bovril. When the onions are translucent, stir in the 2 tablespoons of Bovril. Bovril is a beef extract found with the gravy or in the gourmet section.
- Simmer. Pour in the two cans of bouillon and one can of water. Simmer until the soup is reduced to about half.
- Assemble. To serve, divide the soup among 4 crocks. Put a slice of toasted French bread on top of each and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella.
- Bake. Place the crocks in a cold oven and set the temperature to 250°F. Bake until the cheese is melted and starts to brown, approximately 25 minutes.
Tips
- Use oven-safe soup crocks and set them on a baking sheet.
- Gruyere or Swiss is the traditional cheese; mozzarella melts beautifully too.
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