Comforting Onion Soup
Most of us are familiar with traditional French onion soup, but do you realize there are other types of onion soup as well? Another traditional soup that many people enjoy is potato soup. If you add potatoes and onions in equal amounts, you end up with potato onion soup. The soup is pureed before eating, creating a creamy soup with a lot of flavor.
Sweet Onion Soup laced with Fried Cheese Tortellini is one of Emeril Lagasse’s recipes. He makes it with seasonings, herbs, and sweet onions. He purees the soup with bread and cream to create a silky, satisfying soup. Fresh tortellini are fried in oil for a couple minutes and tossed on top as a garnish. This delicious dish is easy and wonderful!
Asian onion soup is made with a clear broth. Pieces of onion and any other ingredients that you may want to add are put in towards the end of cooking. The solid ingredients provide a contrast with the smooth, clear broth. To do it right, the broth should be simmered most of the day. Add in some pieces of white or red onion, some chopped scallions, a mushroom cap or two and maybe a thin slice of cooked chicken for each serving.
You can even adapt traditional onion soup by choosing your onions carefully. Mix up white, red, and yellow onions in a single kettle of soup. Add in some leeks, shallots, and scallions. This will give you levels of flavor you have never dreamed of. Prepare these other members of the onion family the same way you would in a regular onion soup recipe. Caramelize them until they are sticky and golden brown.
You can also change the way you serve your onion soup. You do not have to top it off with cheese. It is actually very good without the traditional topping. If you do decide to add cheese, try a local specialty cheese or a soft goat cheese. Anything that melts well will be wonderful to serve on top of your soup.
The best French onion soup you have ever eaten will be one that suits your palate. By making it yourself, you can choose what kind of onions to use. You can choose the cheese to put on top. You can choose what herbs and even what kind of wine you may want to add to the broth. Red wine is normally recommended, but white wine adds a dimension all its own. Others prefer a good sherry added in. Whatever makes it comfort food for you is perfect.
If your bowls are not oven safe, try toasting the bread and cheese under the broiler and then putting them on top of the soup. You will not get the bowl sealed with cheese appearance, but it will taste just as good.
French onion soup is true comfort food. If you have never made it before, just wait until you try it. It is simple and good. It warms the soul as well as the belly. It truly is comforting.
One of the most comforting foods is a nice bowl of onion soup topped with crusty French bread and melted cheese. The bubbling cheese invites you to dip your spoon in, cutting a curve into the cheesy bread that has sopped up that delicious beefy broth. The onions are the icing… they melt in your mouth.
