French Onion Soup

Alright, I know I posted a soup recipe last week, but with the official arrival of Fall and cooler weather (finally!) I decided it would be appropriate to post a savory, comfy soup recipe. This week it's homemade French Onion Soup!

This recipe is fast and easy to make, here's what I put into my soup:

- 3 Large onions (Yellow or Vidalia Onions are best, but you could use Red or White onions too)
- 2 Shallots
- 4 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 Tablespoon of Butter
- 1/4 cup of Olive Oil
- 2 Tablespoons of Brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon of Salt
- 1 Tablespoon of Pepper
- 1 Teaspoon of Cumin
- 1 Tablespoon of Thyme (fresh or dried)
- 1 bottle of Autumn Ale (your choice)
- 32 ounces of Chicken Stock
- 1 Beef Bullion cube

The first thing you have to do is caramelize all of those onions! Chop your onions into really thin strips length wise. This takes a little bit of time, but it's worth it. Chop up your garlic and shallots and throw them into a large pot with all your onions. Turn on your burner to a medium-medium high heat. Pour in your olive oil and butter and coat all your onions with the oil/butter. You can now add your salt, pepper, and cumin. Let those onions sweat for 10-15 minutes.

While the onions sweat, you can start on your next step, homemade croutons to top your soup with.

Homemade Seasoned Croutons:
- 1/2  loaf of French bread
- Olive Oil
- Salt/Pepper
- Garlic Salt

I used a loaf of french bread I had that was starting to go stale. Cut up the bread into about 1 inch chucks, places them on a baking sheet lined with foil, drizzled some olive oil over them and added my seasonings. I put them into a 400 degree over for about 5 minutes until they started to turn golden brown, I then turned on the Broiler and got them really toasted for another 2 minutes or so (until golden brown). I then set them aside to cool while I finished my soup.

After your onions are soft, you can add your brown sugar. Turn down the heat down to medium, so the sugar doesn't burn and cook the onions until they are all light brown in color and soft (almost falling apart). Now it's time to add your liquid. First pour your Autumn Ale in to deglaze the pot. You can use any beer you's like, but I used Sierra Nevada's Tumbler Brown Ale. Stir those onions around and let the pot deglaze and let the onions soak in all that Ale goodness. After about 2 minutes, you can add your Chicken stock and beef bullion cube. Stir until the beef bullion cube is dissolved and you are ready for start serving.

Pour your soup into a bowl, shred some sharp white cheddar and parmesan over the top of your soup, place as many croutons as you'd like on top of the cheese, then add some more cheese on top of your croutons. Place your bowls onto a baking sheet and pop them into your oven. Turn on your broiler and let the cheese melt (shouldn't take more than 1-2 minutes).

That is it! Perfect for a cool autumn night! Enjoy!