Vegetarian French onion soup

The infamous Paris bowl

The last time I had soupe à l'oignon I was 19, spending the best summer of my life in Paris running wild and free during the day strolling through the Marais and every gallery I could jump into, and nights dancing up a storm at Bagatelle and BC. It was the life. That life that now seems like a dream but at the time I thought would never end. Enough with the nostalgia back to the soup. It was a particularly dreary day that was spent at Versailles, and the only thing I wanted was a gooey steaming bowl of onion soup. So the second we were back in The Sixth I inhaled one of the best bowls of french onion soup (and my last) I had ever had.

Fast forward a few years that was the last time in my life that I consumed meat, and since French onion soup generally has a beef broth that meant no Bouchon or really any ordering of my favorite soup at a bistro. Recently seeing many different meat-less recipes I decided to fulfill my many year craving and give it a go.

This is one of my most proud culinary moments. This recipe takes time, love, and patience, but the end result will have you practically scrapping your bowl, making a mess, and not caring for a second how many cheesy calories you are consuming. Whether or not you eat meat, this is THE recipe je te promets.

Serves two
2 medium sized yellow onions sliced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 quart mushroom broth
1/2 cup red wine (I used a French Syrah)
3-4 oz. Gruyere cheese
1/4 French baguette (picked up a demi from Dean and Deluca that was an ideal size)
Salt and pepper
Pinch of granulated sugar
2 small oven-safe bowls 

1. Melt the butter and olive oil on medium heat in a medium sized saucepan.
2. Once melted add the onions and coat completely with the oil and butter mixture. Lower the heat to low and cover the saucepan for 15 minutes.
3. Add a pinch of sugar (helps with browning the onions) and 1/2 tablespoon of salt, mix thoroughly and allow to cook for 30-40 minutes. Leave the top off and be sure to check on the onions every five minutes or so and give them a mix. Give them plenty of love and attention till they are brown and golden. It's tedious but keep your eye on them and keep stirring constantly because based on my recipe reviews this is the key to a perfect recipe.
4. Add the wine and slowly add the broth, not all at once though. Salt and pepper to your taste. Increase the heat a bit and cover until it comes up to a simmer. Once you've got a simmer going lower the heat to a low-medium for about 30 minutes.
5. At this point shred your cheese and cut up the baguette into 1 inch pieces about 3 per bowl. Toast the baguette pieces so they'll be nice and hard so they can soak up the broth.
6. Once you're ready to serve turn on your broiler in your oven for the cheese melting.
7. Ladel the soup into the bowls and add a little cheese on top. Then add the baguette pieces and tops with more cheese.
8. Place the bowls on a baking sheet and underneath the broiler in the oven for about 2 minutes, but be sure to watch the bowls so the cheese doesn't get too melted.
9. Once the bubbling of the cheese begins remove your bowls, and pour yourself a glass of wine to enjoy with your cheesy bowl of goodness.