French Onion Soup

It had been in my mind for a long time to make this soup.Finally,I did this today and loved it to its last drop.For past few days,I was suffering from cold and this soup is so much relieving.I tried this with white onions and didn't used any liquor.Traditionally,liquor(like sherry or wine) is used to prepare the soup..Here in restaurants,they don't top it with cheese bread(Croutons) while serving the french onion soup.This further pushed me to try it at home..yeah,I wanna try that cheese bread topping with this soup.And I did,but with cheddar not with the Gruyere cheese..The soup was lip-smackingly delicious...

The real beauty in making french onion soup is in frying the thinly sliced onion to dark brown..I'm so impatient and just didn't browned it much..Even then ,it was good..after all they are onions ..it has to be good :)..I have to be more specific in maintaining the patience next time ..

Note:Some add Worcestershire sauce to the soup..this gives the dark color and extra flavour and tartness to the soup.I just skipped this sauce and prepared..I adapted the recipe from Mrs.Malikka Badrinath's Soup and juice recipes.

You will need:

4 white onions

1 tbsp butter

1 clove of garlic

1 1/2 cup of stock (vegetable/chicken)

salt and pepper

For Croutons :

1 small Baguette bread-sliced into 1 inch thick slices

1 cup of cheese 

some butter

Remove the skin off the onions an put them in boiling water for 5 mins.Then transfer them in cool water for 5 mins.Slice them very thinly..

In a crock pot,melt butter and add the crushed clove of garlic

Add the thinly sliced onion and fry till brown..

Add stock and cook covered for few mins until the onions are soft..

Add required water like 2-3 cups and add salt and pepper as per taste..

Bring to boil and turn off the heat..

Preparing the croutons...

Apply some butter on each baguette slice and top it with some shredded cheese.Line them in a baking tray and bake in 250 C preheated oven for 10 mins or until the cheese melts and gets a golden crust..

Serve the soup hot with few croutons..(Generally,the soup is ladled in a small french ramekins and it is covered with a fitting slicing of baguette and cheese ..which is baked and served )

My croutons got soaked and started sinking while taking pictures..sigh!!

Weight watchers can skip the cheese..

Sending this as my second entry to Dk's A.W.E.D France...

And also to Neha's SWC Soups..

Ratatouille~Anyone Can Cook!

The recipe 'Ratatouille' is known to me only after I watched the movie 'Ratatouille' a few years ago.The movie became my favourite and my love for cooking increased after watching the movie.The animated character 'Remy'(the rat) prepares the lovely french dish Ratatouille in a unconventional way which is originally created by Thomas Keller,a Chef from The French Laundry Restaurant.I wanted to recreate Remy's recipe at home.Remy's recipe calls for layering the roundels of vegetables in a spiral fashion in a baking tray and it is baked to perfection with tomato based sauce.I don't own a proper mandoline so I couldn't attempt it.But today ,I tried the traditional Ratatouille recipe.Fresh vegetables simmered in tomato paste with Herbes de provence..hmm..Its more than satisfying..

You will need:

1 zucchini

1 small Red bell pepper

1 small yellow bell pepper

1 big onion

1 small Eggplant

2 Large tomatoes

2 cloves garlic,finely chopped

150 ml of tomato puree

1 bay leaf

1 tsp of Herbes de provence

Salt and pepper

1 tbsp Olive oil

Roughly chop the vegetables.Heat oil in a pan,add the bay leaf and onion.Saute for a min.Add the garlic.Fry for a min.

Add the peppers,zucchini and eggplant.Fry for a couple of min.Add the tomatoes and tomato puree.

Sprinkle salt and pepper.Add the herbes de provence.Mix well.Simmer and cook covered for 30 mins or until tender.

Have this as main course or as a side dish ..I had it with buns.Loved it..

Sending this lovely recipe to DK's A.W.E.D France