It seems that it may turn out to be,
Feels that it will undoubtedly,
Looks like a rather blustery day, today.
- Winnie the Pooh
Mmm, winter. Fire in the fireplace, sweaters and fuzzy socks, cold weather adventures, cinnamon scented everything, and of course, soup!
Soup is probably one of my favorite food groups. I miss it during the warmer months. Sometimes I make it anyway, just because I love it that much. Its easy, delicious, cooks without too much supervision and, my personal favorite, helps to clean out the fridge and pantry of all those random left overs.
Due to a few random events, my pantry this week is overflowing with onions. Now, practically any recipe can be modified to include onions, and they're already a staple in nearly everything I cook. This week though, I decided to change it up a bit and try a few recipes that actually feature this wonderful flavor tool as the centerpiece.
Two options immediately came to mind: onion rings, and French Onion Soup.
Waking up this morning to the windiest and coldest day of winter so far settled it. Today was to be FOS day (I'm also planning on attempting onion rings, but that story will come later).
I found this great recipe at elizabethrider.com and used it as a template, but changed pretty much everything.
Now, authentic FOS lovers will gasp in horror, but I swapped the thyme for sage and rosemary. I only did this because I have no fresh thyme, but plethoras of fresh sage and rosemary. I prefer fresh herbs to dried ones any day and decided it was worth the flavor change (besides, it would still be delicious!).
I also only cooked the onions for about 20-25 minutes. Again, FOS lovers shield your eyes. In real FOS, you would cook the onions down for almost an hour to allow them to caramelize properly, but I didn't for two reasons.
1. FOS always reminds me of my grandma. She makes a killer one for most holidays. So I gave her a call and chatted while I was prepping the ingredients. She said she never cooks hers for that long, and since I was trying to ultimately emulate her soup's flavor, I decided to just cook them until the texture was right (noodle-y and translucent).
2. I was really hungry.
So, in a nutshell, here was my FOS
2 tbs olive oil
1 large yellow onion
1 large sprig fresh rosemary (greens)
4 small fresh sage leaves (broadly minced)
1 carton vegetable stock (1 quart)
1 bay leaf
worcestershire sauce (vegan)
garlic powder
salt
pepper
Slice the onion into long, thin, half-moons. Saute in olive oil with rosemary and sage over medium low heat until translucent and soft. Leave in for up to 50 minutes to achieve full caramelization. Stir in stock and bring to a simmer. Stir in bay leaf, worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, s/p to taste. Allow to simmer on low heat for a bit for maximum flavor.
I used the time at the end to run to the store and get some fresh, warm french bread. If I had thought it out I would have made my own, but alas, it will have to wait until next time. Also, traditional FOS has Gruyère cheese added before it is served. This vegan version would pair amazingly with one of the cashew cheeses you can find at nutritionstripped.com. Again, next time.
Delicious, hot, satisfying. Bring on winter! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to take some to my grandma.
Soup is probably one of my favorite food groups. I miss it during the warmer months. Sometimes I make it anyway, just because I love it that much. Its easy, delicious, cooks without too much supervision and, my personal favorite, helps to clean out the fridge and pantry of all those random left overs.
Due to a few random events, my pantry this week is overflowing with onions. Now, practically any recipe can be modified to include onions, and they're already a staple in nearly everything I cook. This week though, I decided to change it up a bit and try a few recipes that actually feature this wonderful flavor tool as the centerpiece.
Two options immediately came to mind: onion rings, and French Onion Soup.
Waking up this morning to the windiest and coldest day of winter so far settled it. Today was to be FOS day (I'm also planning on attempting onion rings, but that story will come later).
I found this great recipe at elizabethrider.com and used it as a template, but changed pretty much everything.
Now, authentic FOS lovers will gasp in horror, but I swapped the thyme for sage and rosemary. I only did this because I have no fresh thyme, but plethoras of fresh sage and rosemary. I prefer fresh herbs to dried ones any day and decided it was worth the flavor change (besides, it would still be delicious!).
I also only cooked the onions for about 20-25 minutes. Again, FOS lovers shield your eyes. In real FOS, you would cook the onions down for almost an hour to allow them to caramelize properly, but I didn't for two reasons.
1. FOS always reminds me of my grandma. She makes a killer one for most holidays. So I gave her a call and chatted while I was prepping the ingredients. She said she never cooks hers for that long, and since I was trying to ultimately emulate her soup's flavor, I decided to just cook them until the texture was right (noodle-y and translucent).
2. I was really hungry.
So, in a nutshell, here was my FOS
2 tbs olive oil
1 large yellow onion
1 large sprig fresh rosemary (greens)
4 small fresh sage leaves (broadly minced)
1 carton vegetable stock (1 quart)
1 bay leaf
worcestershire sauce (vegan)
garlic powder
salt
pepper
Slice the onion into long, thin, half-moons. Saute in olive oil with rosemary and sage over medium low heat until translucent and soft. Leave in for up to 50 minutes to achieve full caramelization. Stir in stock and bring to a simmer. Stir in bay leaf, worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, s/p to taste. Allow to simmer on low heat for a bit for maximum flavor.
I used the time at the end to run to the store and get some fresh, warm french bread. If I had thought it out I would have made my own, but alas, it will have to wait until next time. Also, traditional FOS has Gruyère cheese added before it is served. This vegan version would pair amazingly with one of the cashew cheeses you can find at nutritionstripped.com. Again, next time.
Delicious, hot, satisfying. Bring on winter! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to take some to my grandma.
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