French Onion Soup

I do love French Onion Soup but everytime I order it out, it is waaaaaaaaayyyyyyy too salty and I hate it.

I remember as a kid going with my sister and my parents to this french bistro called Marcels in Dutchess County NY.  We went often, like probably every other week.  My families weakness (one of them) is eating out.  We all love it!  This was back in the day, pre kids menus, pre chicken nugget days that our kids seem to live on.  So you had to order something off the menu or ask them to make you something a little special.  Also, if you went to dinner with my parents it wasn't an in and out affair- it was going to take awhile!  As a child you occupied yourself, looking under the table, taking many many trips to the bathroom, walking around in the bar etc.  Anything until your parents finished their espresso and anniesette.

Alex (my sister) always ordered Garlic Green Beans and French Onion Soup, me- Steak au Poivre and bread.  I remember having some of her soup everytime but the best part was the burnt gruyere around the edges of the crock and a spoonful of the onions...  ahhhh bliss!

I decided recently to make French Onion Soup at home....  I even made the beef stock!  If I had a skinny weird mustache I would twirl it or make some other gesture right now.  I even went for the super slow caramelization of the onions- I usually have a habit of not being able to wait for my onions to caramelize so I adjust the heat as the cooking process moves along- I also add sugar and salt which really helps.  After I cooked the onions till they were pretty much melting I deglazed with marsala, I have used sherry as well in the past.  This just gives you another layer of flavor in the onions.  Chardonnay works well too!  Then I sprinkle in a few tablespoons of all purpose flour and stir it around till the flour taste cooks out- a few minutes.  Then I start pouring in the stock and whisking the floured onion mixture.  Once it is all incorporated I switch to a wooden spoon with a flat edge and make sure I get up all the brown bits on the bottom.  I bring this to a boil and let it thicken.

At this moment in time I have one oven proof soup bowl (so sad I know).  so I ladled in some soup with onions and added a slice or two of toasted baguette- then I added grated gruyere to the top and popped it into the oven, under the broiler.  It didn't get as crispy browned as I like but this soup was really killer.  It wasn't too salty and I ended up using it as a base for another soup for a client the next day.  I would totally make this again- but seriously I need to get some bowls I can really blast in the oven!

The recipe goes a little like this:

Stock:
beef bones with some meat on them
couple of carrots peeled and cut into chunks
1 spanish onion chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
bay leaf
pepper salt
h2o

Soup:
4 spanish onions halved then sliced thin
butter/olive oil (couple of tablespoons)
wine of your choice to deglaze
fresh thyme leaves
dusting of flour
toasted or stale baguette slices
grated gruyere

*oven proof bowls!!!!

after making stock and straining start with the onions....

in a wide saute pan melt butter oil mix, add onion slices, fresh thyme leaves, sprinkle with s&p and a spoonful of sugar to hurry it along...  cook, stirring pretty frequently until pretty golden brown.  DONT LET IT BURN.  once they are as dark as you think will work add the flour and stir for a few more minutes, deglaze with wine.  Then start adding ladles of your stock and whisking around so you don't have lumps etc.  Add the rest of the stock and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Taste it at this point and see if you need more s&p or anything else really.  Once it has the balance you like then ladle it into a bowl- add the bread slices and finish with the grated cheese.  Broil this until brown and crispy around the edges.

At the point of checking your seasoning you can stop and cool the soup down to store as well- keep it sealed up in the fridge till you want it!  Remember though to heat it through before you put it under the broiler.

French Nougat.... oooh lala

A few years ago I was in Provence for a few weeks with my family and some friends.  It was pretty awesome- we did not much more then let the kids swim in the pool at the villa, eat and go to open air markets.  Literally, I think Jill and I drove to every market in the area and did nothing but shop, walk around and look and eat….. Can’t ask for more than that!

One of the things that I saw and loved was nougat.  I have a sweet tooth though it isn’t enormous.. but the look of these “cakes” of nougat really got to me.  They had different flavors and were sold by weight and in slices.  It was awesome!  I have not seen this type of nougat again until recently.  Walking through the bakery dept at Whole Foods I saw some slices prepackaged, they even had a couple of flavors.  I picked up one (a slice was about $10) and took it home.  It was a traditional Almond flavor and it was really delicious with its sweet almost airy texture and whole crunchy almonds laced throughout.  It didn’t taste as fresh or as yummy as the ones in France but it really made me start thinking about it again.  And of course I thought…. I can make this.  I tried looking it up online and found tons of recipes all slightly varying for nougat or torrone or whatever else its called. 

I found a recipe that I thought would work- honey, sugar, water, corn syrup and almonds.  One thing it called for was a candy thermometer ….. which I don’t have any longer since someone broke it last year.  (Shows how much I use it!)  So I had to guess using my meat thermometer that only goes up to …. 200 degrees. 

I gave it a try and it looked great- not the nougat I was looking for but it was pretty damn good looking and I was impressed!  I let it sit overnight to “cure” sort of like marshmallows (which I am awesome at making).  The next day it looked good and I took it out of the pan, I cut it and put the slice on a piece of plastic wrap, it tasted good but when I looked over at the “cake” it had started to move!  It was sort of having the silly putty effect where you put it in one place and it just relaxes and spreads out….  I quickly shoved it back into the pan where it all miraculously went back together like I had never removed a slice!  So- obviously the thermometer was important after all and my “guesstimating at the temp didn’t work….. 

All said, I am not giving up on my French nougat…..  

The way it looks when I get home from the store...

I read food and cooking blogs just like everyone else.  I do it to see what other people are up to and to gather inspiration.  Sometimes I see these photos and I think JESUS CHRIST- how is it possible to go out, shop, drag it all home (thank you MoCo bag tax, now my life is not much different then living in Austria, having to bring all my own damn bags to the store), unpack, put it away and then start cooking.  Ok, just writing all that made me tired and I need to put my feet up! 

So, this is what it looks like when I get home from the grocery store….. look familiar?

How about when I cook something walk into another room and the two whippets counter surf and sample some of the goods?  At Christmas this year I bought a frozen raspberry tarte from TJ’s.  When I walked back into the kitchen the berries were gone!  After yelling at the dogs (who all scatter immediately) it turns out it was Cami- So, go figure.

Generally, I never cook one thing at a time.  I think if I did I would be a lot calmer and happier.  But I live in my world where I have to make several dishes for several people including my own.  I am able to multi task and keep it all going but it can be exhausting.  At the end I am sometimes sick of my own food and can’t wait to go home take a shower and go out to dinner.

The Holidays

I know I said I would be inspired everyday and write a little bit….. but the holidays hit as they always do- not enough done ahead of time, work, family, events etc.  We are all in the same boat!  Years ago I baked a LOT of cookies every Christmas, now I am lucky if I get one batch done!  I start out with the best intentions…..  but like everything else I grab those few minutes of staring at the Christmas tree and thinking about wrapping up the year and beginning anew when I can.  Usually that means on the couch with one of these…

This is my small recap of the holidays this year.  I did bake a couple of cookies but I am ashamed to admit they were from a box!  All in all they worked out- pretty, festive and yummy.  I made one batch of from scratch dough that they kids cut out, baked and decorated on Christmas Eve for Santa. 

I do love Christmas, it was such a magical time in my childhood and I hope I have made it that way for the girls!  This year was the first time I really saw them as getting older, wanting the old traditions but really moving onward in their lives.  Amazing to watch.

2011 went out like a lion and 2012 came in like a lamb- quiet and full of new promises.  Dim Sum on New Years Eve and Pulling out all the stops on New Years Day to ensure some good fortune and luck- Black Eyed Peas, Lentil Soup, Long Noodles, a few shavings of my own gift: a Perigord Black Truffle and of course a bottle of Veuve Cliquot.  Here is hoping 2011 is a good one for all of us. (keeping my fingers crossed of course)