Vegetarian French Onion Soup

This is my recipe for French Onion Soup.  I make this so many times between the Fall and Spring.  It is rich and delicious and filling. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 stick of butter

4-5 large onions, cut in half and then sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 bay leaf

3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme

salt (you don’t need much salt since the broth has lots of sodium)

freshly ground black pepper

1 cup of red wine

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 quarts low sodium veggie broth (most recipes call for beef broth but I prefer to make this a vegetarian dish...never use chicken broth as a substitute...trust me)

1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (most recipes call for Gruyére cheese but the mozzarella is less greasy and healthier)

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese (this helps to make up for the tangy flavor you get from Gruyére)

1 baguette, sliced

Chives or green onion, sliced thinly

Directions:

 Melt the butter in a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat.  Add in the onions, garlic, bay leaf, thyme, salt and freshly ground black pepper and mix it thoroughly until the onions are coated in the butter.  Cook the onions, alternating between medium and medium high heat, for an hour or longer, stirring every 3-5 minutes.  You want the onions to be really dark brown and caramelized. If they don’t caramelize you will have watery soup. 

Add in the wine and the dijon and stir, when it comes to a boil reduce the heat and simmer until the wine has reduced and the onions are dry.  At this point you can discard the thyme sprigs and the bay leaf.  Turn the heat down to medium low (you don’t want your flour to burn) and dust the whole mixture with the flour, stir and let it cook on low for about 8-10 minutes.  Now add the broth, bring to a simmer and let it cook for 15-20 more minutes until it reaches the desired consistency.  I like my soup to be nice and thick and rich so I let it cook and reduce for 20 or so minutes.  

While the soup is finishing up, lay the slices of the bread on a cookie sheet and broil for a few minutes until they are lightly golden, then flip and repeat.  Make sure to set a time unless you are sure you won’t forget about them...burnt baguette does not work well for this soup.  Once they pieces are golden on both sides set them aside until the soup is ready to be transferred to your oven-safe serving dishes.  Ladle the soup into the bowls and float the baguette slices on top.  Sprinkle on some cheese, slip the bowls into the oven on a cookie sheet and broil until it’s the cheese is melted and golden.  I also like to make a few little baguette slices with melted cheese for dipping in the soup.  Sprinkle on some chives or green onion if you have them around and enjoy!