Recipe by: Gourmet Traveller
Serves: 4
Time: 1hr 40mins
Ingredients
- 100g butter, coarsely chopped
- 2kg onions, thinly sliced
- 1 litre beef stock (4 cups) (substitute with vegetable stock for vegetarians)
- 4 thyme sprigs
- 3 parsley stalks
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- 8 1cm-thick slices of baguette cut on diagonal, lightly toasted
- 250 gm coarsely grated Gruyère
Method
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Melt butter in a large, wide heavy-based saucepan over medium heat, add onions, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until onions are soft. Remove lid and cook for 1 hour or until soft and starting to caramelise.
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Add stock, ½ a cup at a time, and simmer for 5 minutes or until stock has almost evaporated. Repeat three times more until 2 cups of stock has been added.
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Using kitchen twine, tie herbs together, add to onions with remaining stock and season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer, scraping the base to remove any caramelised bits, for 40 minutes or until thick. Makes 6 cups.
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Preheat oven to 200C. Ladle soup into 1½ capacity oven-proof bowls and transfer to an oven tray. Scatter with half the cheese, top each with two toasted baguette slices and scatter with remaining cheese. Place in oven and cook for 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Serve immediately.
