Hello fellow gourmands! It's time for Recipe Fridays, a semi-regular feature of Out Of The Blue. As you probably don't know, I am a gourmet cook as a hobby (and to eat well every night,) schooled by the finest restaurants in Boston and around the world (well, at least around the country.)

Tonight, its Caramelized Onion Soup. Many people think that in order to have a sweet onion soup that they have to use Vidalia onions or add a bit of sugar or a sweet wine to the soup. Not so, when you caramelize the onions. Sauteing the onions long enough brings out the sugar in the onions and imparts a sweet taste, hence the name "caramelized." Try it, you'll like it.

Caramelized Onion Soup

3 large onions, peeled and thinly sliced (about 5 cups)
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 10 1/2 oz cans of beef stock/broth (or Tone's beef base concentrate, 1 1/2 tbls. to 32 oz boiling water)
2 cups water
1 cup red wine

1. Melt the butter in a heavy stockpot over medium high heat, and add the onions and black pepper. Stir the onions to coat with the butter, and continue cooking the onions, stirring often, until the onions are light brown. They will reduce in bulk while cooking. May take a while, so be patient, the results will be worth it. Sprinkle flour over onions and stir until all trace of the flour is gone.

2. Remove from heat, and add the beef stock, stirring, then the water and wine, stirring. Put back on medium high heat, stirring often until boiling. Reduce heat to simmer, and let cook for several hours (I let it go for four to five at least.)

3. Ladle into individual soup bowls, top with a toasted piece of French or Italian bread, cut thin, and Gruyere cheese. Put under the broiler until the cheese is melted. Serve with a red wine, I am really liking the 2001 Kendall-Jackson Vineyards Shiraz, a bargain cabernet at $10.

4. You can also put in the refrigerator after step 2, and let sit overnight before reheating and serving. That seems to improve the taste.

Bon appetit!

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