Down2Sexy's Famous French Onion Soup

Name: Down2Sexy''s Famous French Onion Soup Recipe
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 5 medium (2-1/2 inch diameter) onions (I use 3 yellow onions and 2 red onions); 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme; 1/4 cup dark brown sugar packed; 2 tablespoons Merlot or other red wine; 4 cups Swanson 100% fat-free reduced sodium beef broth; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1/4 teaspoon salt (I use coarse sea salt); 6 slices French Italian or sourdough bread cut into cubes; 3/4 ounce shredded Gruyere cheese

(19)

Minutes to Prepare: 25
Minutes to Cook: 60

Number of Servings: 6

Ingredients

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil5 medium (2-1/2 inch diameter) onions (I use 3 yellow onions and 2 red onions)1/8 teaspoon dried thyme1/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed2 tablespoons Merlot or other red wine4 cups Swanson 100% fat-free, reduced sodium beef broth1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper1/4 teaspoon salt (I use coarse sea salt)6 slices French, Italian, or sourdough bread, cut into cubes3/4 ounce shredded Gruyere cheese

Directions

Peel onions and slice them thinly. Heat olive oil in a stock pot over medium high heat. Add onions and thyme to the pot and stir to coat the onions with the oil. Cook over medium high heat , stirring frequently until onions soften. When onions are all transparent, add brown sugar and stir to coat.

Continue cooking onions, stirring frequently, until they start to brown (about 15 minutes). Reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until onions are browned and carmelized. Pour in red wine and cook, stirring constantly, until the wine has all cooked off and the pot is de-glazed. Add beef broth all at once, stirring while pouring to loosen any remaining bits of onion from the sides and bottom of the pot.

Cover, reduce heat and simmer the soup for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. While soup is simmering, preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Ladle 1 .5 cupx of soup into each of 6 ovenproof soup cups or bowls. Top each bowl of soup with 1 slice of cubed bread and divide teh shredded Gruyere evenly over the bowls of soup.

Place bowls on a baking sheet and bake in pre-heated 400 degree oven for 5 minutes or until cheese has started to melt, but still retains it's shape. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 1 or 2 minutes before serving. Caution: Soup will be very hot!

Makes 6 2-cup servings (1.5 cup soup, .5 cup bread and cheese mixture), each of which is filling enough to make a meal. .

Number of Servings: 6

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user DOWN2SEXY.

Servings Per Recipe: 6

Nutritional Info Amount Per Serving

Calories: 269.5
Total Fat: 11.6 g
Cholesterol: 3.9 mg
Sodium: 603.7 mg
Total Carbs: 34.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.6 g
Protein: 7.0 g

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Member Reviews

KIRSTYRE
Panera Bread, eat your heart out! Absolutely fabulous! It's now in our favourite recipe list and we can't wait to serve it to visiting friends and family :) Thanks for posting! - 7/24/11

Reply from CD3006903 (7/25/11)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe for French Onion Soup and for leaving such a complimentary comment. I'm really glad you enjoyed it.
SES823
Love this recipe - 7/22/21
REDROBIN47
I have saved this recipe to try. Sounds delicious. - 2/16/21
NASFKAB
Great idea cooking the onions till they are well browned. - 8/23/19
FISHGUT3
thanks - 6/8/19
SUSANBEAMON
This had a very beefy flavor. I would make it again. - 10/7/18
CHERIRIDDELL
lovely - 7/11/18
RD03875
Good recipe but the brown sugar made it too sweet. Next time I will omit the sugar. - 3/12/15
POLLYWANNA1
Very good. I'll cut back on the brown sugar next time. :)
- 6/3/14
RIOGHAIN
Thank you for this great recipe - finally I was able to make an onion soup that tastes just like what I have eaten back in Europe! Made our Friday dinner (pairs well with a glass of a very dry shiraz to offset the sweetness of caramelized onions, which is an absolute must in a proper onion soup.) - 3/28/14
CD13527239
OMG. it is simmering on the stove now, and I have to stop myself from ladelling it all up before it reaches the oven for the final bake... flavor is outstanding! thanks for the recipe! - 1/13/13
CD13399111
This was an amazing soup and I was totally full after eating it which was great! I thought it was a bit sweet, but my fiance thought it was fantastic. Thank you for this recipe!! I will be making it again. - 1/7/13

Reply from CD3006903 (1/15/13)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe and leave a complimentary comment. I'm glad you and your fiance enjoyed the soup. It is really filling -and for not that many calories! Next time you make it, you might reduce the brown sugar. Some onions are sweeter than others, so that can make a difference
CD7056031
Takes a bit of time but SO worth it. - 8/18/12
ELLIEJOSIE
Tried this with a few modifications: no sugar, added 8 oz of sliced mushrooms that had to be used up, plus used the homemade stock from pulled pork and pulled beef (made that last weekend). Used the crockpot to simmer it to assist my schedule - we liked it very much. - 4/4/12
AURYNGOLD
Followed the recipe exactly, but found it more sweet than salty. The bread didn't crisp, but a few minutes under the broiler might fix that. I would DEFINITELY make this recipe again, but perhaps cut the brown sugar, increase the beef broth slightly, and broil on high for a few minutes. - 1/17/12
RAENDROPS
I too think it was a little sweet; I used exactly the amount of brown sugar, but half again as much broth and I still find it a bit on the sweet side. But overall, a really good soup recipe! - 3/16/11

Reply from CD3006903 (3/29/11)
Thanks for taking time to rate and comment on my recipe. When I get a chance, I'll check the recipe to see if I entered the correct amount on the brown sugar. I know tastes differ, but it's also possible that I typed it in wrong! LOL
APPLE2BOO
good soup. I added Worchester sauce. Next time I will decrease the brown sugar by half. - 2/24/11

Reply from CD3006903 (3/5/11)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe and leave a complimentary comment. I'm glad you enjoyed the soup. It's one of our favorites.
MAESTRAKARINE
Sounds scrumptious. Can't wait to try this. - 1/6/11
JOWENS08
Pretty good but too sweet for me, I would take out almost all the brown sugar next time. - 3/13/10

Reply from CD3006903 (3/15/10)
Thanks for taking time to comment on my recipe. I hope it suits you better after you reduce the sugar.
MARIECL
Great! - 2/23/10

Reply from CD3006903 (2/24/10)
Thanks for taking time to review and comment on my recipe. I'm glad you liked it.
TOBEFEARLESS
Thank you for this LOVELY soup!! It is now a staple in our girls night dinners!! It is savoury and filling, and perfect for warm winter evenings!! I use half smoked Gruyere half regular sometimes for a little extra flavor!

Thanks again!!! - 11/23/09

Reply from CD3006903 (11/23/09)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe and for leaving such a complimentary comment. I'm glad you're enjoying it.
JAYJAYBEE55
I made this today and it was so perfect on a rainy, cold and gloomy day. It's my son's favorite soup and his request, but we all enjoyed it. Very little is sacrified from the traditional recipe to make this just a bit healthier and you are so right, slow reduction boosts flavor. Great recipe. THX! - 10/25/09

Reply from CD3006903 (10/27/09)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe and leave a complimentary comment. I'm a soup lover in the fall and winter. Nothing warms like a nice, hot bowl of soup. I'm glad your family enjoyed it.
VOLLMELD
Down2Sexy, I loved your soup. We had it tonight for dinner.
Diane (Vollmeld) - 10/13/09

Reply from CD3006903 (10/14/09)
Thanks for taking time to rate my recipe and leave a complimentary comment. It's officially soup weather where I live now, so I'm thinking about making some of this soup soon. Today, it's chicken noodle soup, though, because I'm under the weather.
TANDY456
This sounds great. I'm going to try it this weekend. - 4/18/09

Reply from CD3006903 (4/18/09)
I hope you enjoy it. I kind of wish I had bought more onions when I went to the grocery today. French Onion Soup sounds good to me now! LOL
CD1995858
D2, this was yummy and I'm glad you shared it. Way better than the other one I tried and my fiance, who loves french onion soup, agreed it was the best he's tried. Love the addition of the brown sugar to the onions. Takes a while to make but is worth it. - 2/3/09

Reply from CD3006903 (2/3/09)
Thank you so much for the favorable rating and for your kind comments. I'm like your fiance, I really love French Onion Soup and this is by far the best I've ever had, I think. I based this on a recipe in "The Joy of Cooking" but "skinnied" it up so I wouldn't have to live without it!