French Onion Soup

Well, it is freezing here in Florida tonight, and by freezing, I mean "Florida Freezing" and that is mid forties.  Since there is a chill in the air, I thought of soup, and I decided to try my hand at french onion soup.  I like that this recipe called for toasting the crouton instead of broiling the entire bowl of soup with the cheese over it.  Now I love a bubbling cauldron of cheese, but I simply don't have the crocks.  It wasn't a fast dinner, (25 minutes for caramelizing onions alone!) but it was a tasty dinner.  Next time I would make homemade broth; I felt that the cartons I used took a bit a way from the end result.  However, we all enjoyed it.  Even the three year old ate heartily. 



French Onion Soup
 
1/2 Cup unsalted butter
4 onions sliced
2 garlic cloves chopped
2 bay leaves
2 fresh thyme sprigs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Cup red wine about 1/2 bottle
3 heaping tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 Qt beef broth
1 baguette sliced
1/2 Lb grated Gruyere
Melt the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions,
 garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and salt and pepper and cook until the
onions are very soft and caramelized, about 25 minutes. Add the wine,
bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has
evaporated and the onions are dry, about 5 minutes. Discard the bay
leaves and thyme sprigs. Dust the onions with the flour and give them a
stir. Turn the heat down to medium low so the flour doesn't burn, and
cook for 10 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Now add the beef
broth, bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Season,
to taste, with salt and pepper.~
When you're ready to eat, preheat the broiler. Arrange the baguette
slices on a baking sheet in a single layer. Sprinkle the slices with the
Gruyere and broil until bubbly and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.~
Ladle the soup in bowls and float several of the Gruyere croutons on top.

Alternative method: Ladle the soup into bowls, top each with 2 slices of
bread and top with cheese. Put the bowls into the oven to toast the
bread and melt the cheese.~