This is not your normal boring French onion soup. This recipe is bristling with flavor! I mean, beer AND bacon?! Really? Take my money! When I spy onion soup on a menu I almost always order it, because I’m intrigued how others put their spin on it. I’m often underwhelmed by the broth, so I wanted to come up with a version that has some real zing to it.
Angie and I tag team this recipe. I do the ground work and get the onions and broth ready, then tag her in to prepare the bread and finish the bowls in the oven. Cooking together is awesome, but we have a tiny kitchen with only room for one wielding a knife or something hot. Safety first! But if you and your boo can cook this together, go for it! Beer in the French onion soup with bacon flavored French kisses? Sounds like a start to a romantic evening to me…….!
Here’s what I consider the hard part to this soup: serving it so the cheese is melted before the bread absorbs the soup and loses its crunch. If there’s one thing that will ruin onion soup it’s soggy bread. If you don’t get it right the first time, don’t give up. Tweak the timing a little bit or use crustier bread but I hope the steps I describe in the recipe below prevent your bread from getting soggy. I want this to be a slam dunk on your first try!
I think adding a beer makes this recipe a little bit fun and unique, and gives you something to sip while you wait for the onions to caramelize. There are so many beers out there and they all can add their own fingerprint on the broth. I’m not into strong or stout beers, but that’s what you want to use. The more flavor the better! I suggest at least an IPA, probably not a sour, and if you’re thinking of using Bud Light you’re not trying hard enough. Here’s what I used this time around (see picture below). It was something somebody left in my fridge at a recent party. If that’s you, thanks for contributing to my onion soup!
Serves 4
Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 2 hours
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 bacon strips
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 lbs onions
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp caraway seeds
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 stout or IPA beer
- 8 cups beef broth (I prefer Swanson)
- 5 oz crostini baked bread, sliced
- 12 slices Gruyère or provolone cheese, sliced thin
- paprika as a topping
- fresh thyme as a topping (optional)
RECIPE:
Open the beer and let some of the fizz die out. Or we can call this “letting it breathe” if that feels more sophisticated.
Slice the onions in half then slice each half into fourths and place in a bowl. Add the garlic and caraway seeds to the onions.
In a stock pot, cook the bacon on medium heat. Remove when done, let them cool and be a hero and treat your dogs to them while you add the butter to the pot. If you don’t have dogs you can eat them yourself as an appetizer or save them for something else. But if you have dogs and you’ve been cooking bacon, I bet those dogs have that scent in their snout something fierce and are staring at you with those deep puppy eyes hoping you’ll come through just this once……!
Once melted, add the onion, garlic, and caraway seeds. Stir to coat each onion slice in the butter, then cover and allow to sweat on medium heat until caramelized. This will take about 30 minutes and the onions will reduce quite a bit during the process. If they start to burn, reduce the heat.
When the onions are caramelized to your liking stir in the flour and cook for about one minute. Then add the beer and beef broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 1 hour. Add freshly cracked salt and pepper as needed. If the broth needs more beef flavor add a bouillon cube. If it reduces too much add water or broth as you see fit.
Turn oven to 350 F. Add a dab of butter to each slice of crostini on a baking sheet and place on the middle rack of the oven. Heat until slightly browned, remove, and set aside.
Switch oven to broil. Place serving bowls on a baking pan. When ready, place 3 slices of the crostini in the bottom of each bowl. Ladle the onion soup in the bowls and then layer crostini slices on top. Four slices fit perfectly in our bowls. Then layer 3 slices of cheese over the bread. I prefer the taste of gouda but it doesn’t melt as well as provolone. If you’re having trouble deciding which to use, place a slice in each hand and offer it to your dog. Let him make the decision. They usually have pretty good taste. Sprinkle paprika over the cheese and place the baking pan with the bowls of soup on the top rack of the oven. Be very careful not to burn the cheese. You just want to cook until the cheese melts and starts to brown a little bit.
Sprinkle some fresh thyme over the top if you’re using, serve, and enjoy!
