Deep, Dark French Onion Soup

This soup will make you cry. Tears of joy? Perhaps. But long before there can be any joyful crying, there will have to be some plain old onion-fumes-in-the-eyes crying. Without a doubt, peeling and slicing six onions will send tears streaming down your cheeks. But, have courage! Brave the fumes! A bowl of this hearty, full-flavored soup is worth every last tear.

The great thing about this recipe is that all of its deep, rich flavor comes straight from the onions. This is not soggy, pale onions floating in beef broth. It is onion soup. Before the broth is added, the onions are caramelized and deglazed, caramelized and deglazed, over and over, to create a soup thick with intense onion flavor. And, in case the prospect of hours of careful onion watching doesn't appeal to you, this recipe calls upon your (unwatched) oven to do most of the work. The soup can be made with a traditional beef base, but it's also good with vegetable stock or even water. Most of the flavor comes from the onions, so the vegetarian version has plenty of flavor. 

The recipe begins with a mountain of sliced onions. The onions spend a few hours in the oven, then they go to the stove top, where they become sticky and sweet and beautifully caramelized. The pot is deglazed multiple times to produce lots of browned onion flavor. Then the onions are simmered with some stock, a splash of sherry, a few sprigs of thyme and a bay leaf. Finally, the soup is poured into crocks and topped with Gruyère croutons. 

French Onion Soup

Adapted from Cooks Illustrated, January 2008. Makes 2 quarts, or six big bowls.

• 6 large yellow onions (about 4 pounds--do not use sweet onions because they will get too sweet and gummy).
• 3 tablespoons butter
• kosher salt

• 1 cup water for deglazing
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 4 cups chicken broth, 2 cups beef broth, and 2 cups water 
• or 6 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups water
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• ground black pepper

• 1 baguette
• 8 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. (The onions are going to be in the oven for several hours, so if you want to cook something else at the same time, like a chicken or a pot roast, you can turn the temperature down to 350 degrees with no problem).

Slice the onions. Cut each onion in half, pole to pole. Then cut off the roots and tips, peel away the skin, and cut the onions into quarter-inch slices. It's best to slice them with the grain (pole to pole) instead of against the grain (like onion rings) because this helps them to hold a nice texture--soft strips instead of gooey mush.

Put the onions in a a dutch oven with three tablespoons of butter and a teaspoon of kosher salt. Put the lid on and bake for one hour. Then, take the onions out, give them a stir, and put them back in the oven for another hour and thirty minutes, this time with the lid slightly ajar. Stir once after about an hour. The onions will be reduced in size and pale brown in color.

Move the dutch oven to a burner on the stove top. Cook the onions over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. The liquid should evaporate after about 15 minutes. When that happens, turn the heat down to medium and continue to cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan until the onions are brown and a dark crust forms on the bottom of the pan. (Keep scraping and scraping the bottom of the pan until the crust on the bottom is so dark and dry that it's difficult to scrape it up and you're worried that it might start to burn). Stir in one one fourth cup of water to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom and sides until all of the brown bits are mixed in with the onions.

Repeat the browning and deglazing process three more times, always letting a dark crust form on the bottom of the pan before adding water. Stay close to the stove or set a timer for one or two minutes at a time so that your onions don't accidentally burn. 

Finally, brown the onions one final time and then deglaze with one half cup of dry sherry. (The sherry adds acidity to balance out the sweetness of the onions and another nice layer of flavor. If you decide to skip it, deglaze with water and consider adding a dash of mild vinegar). Cook for several minutes, then stir in the chicken and beef broths,  two cups of water, and a teaspoon of kosher salt. (You can use all beef broth, but the combination of beef and chicken rounds out the flavor nicely. If you're making a vegetarian version, substitute vegetable broth for the chicken and beef broths).  Add the thyme and bay leaf. (Six sprigs of thyme sounded like a lot to me the first time I made this recipe, but it's just the right amount and it's a key flavor in the soup. Be sure to use fresh thyme. You can tie the sprigs together with a piece of kitchen twine or put the thyme and bay leaf into a large tea ball). Turn the heat up to high until the soup begins to bubble gently. Immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove and discard the thyme and bay leaf. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

All that remains to be done is to garnish the soup. Cut a baguette into one-half-inch slices. Toast the bread under the broiler very briefly. Then, you have two options. Option one: ladle the soup into broiler-proof crocks. Place the baguette slices on top of each bowl of soup in a single layer. Sprinkle grated cheese over the top and broil for 3-5 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Option two: figure out how many baguette slices are needed to cover each soup bowl. Arrange the slices on a cookie sheet in close groups, one cluster for each bowl of soup. Sprinkle cheese over the top of each group of bread slices and broil until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and let it cool for a few minutes, then use a spatula to transfer each group of cheesy baguette slices (together as one) to the bowls of soup. I like the second option because it's a little bit easier and can accomodate any kind of soup bowl, but putting the little crocks under the broiler can be fun too.

Corn with Green Onions and Quinoa

Fresh corn is sweet, delicious summer fare. It's good on the cob, but for something different, try a quick sauté with green onions. And, for something more substantial, mix in some tasty, high-protein quinoa. This dish is good by itself, and it's also great with grilled chicken, steak, barbecue ribs, grilled veggies--basically any of the usual suspects at a summer barbecue.

Start by cutting the corn from the cob. Get out a baking dish (something you might make brownies in), stand each ear of corn on its tip in the middle of the dish, and cut along the cob from top to bottom with a sharp knife. The kernels drop into the dish, and the sides of the dish should be high enough to prevent the corn from bouncing out onto the counter but not so high that they interfere with the action of the knife. Once the kernels are free from the cob, mix in some sliced green onions and sauté over high heat in a little olive oil until the corn is hot and lightly charred, a few minutes. Toss with cooked quinoa and season with salt and pepper for a quick, lovely summer dish. 

I've provided specific quantities below, but you can use as much or as little of any of the ingredients as you like. You need some corn, some green onions, some butter and olive oil for the pan, and some cooked quinoa. The only ingredients that really need to be measured are the quinoa and stock. You can use any amount of quinoa, but the ratio of quinoa to liquid should be one to two, by volume.

Corn with Green Onions and Quinoa

Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. Serves 2-4 as a main dish or 4-6 as a side dish.

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 4 ears of corn, shucked, with kernels sliced from the cob
• 1 bunch of scallions, sliced, including the white and green parts (reserve some of the greens for garnish)
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• salt and pepper

Pour the stock into a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Measure the quinoa into a sieve and give it a brief rinse under cold water (Quinoa has a natural dusting of a bitter substance on the outside of each grain to discourage critters from eating the seeds. Some quinoa does not require rinsing, but better safe than sorry if you're not sure.) Add the quinoa to the boiling stock, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes, until most of the water is absorbed and the grains are soft and slightly chewy.

Meanwhile, heat the butter and olive oil over high heat in a large nonstick skillet. Add the corn and green onions and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are bright green and the corn is slightly charred, about 3 minutes. The corn will be somewhat crunchy. If you prefer softer corn, cook over medium heat for a longer time. 

When the quinoa is ready, stir it into the skillet with the corn and green onions. Scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Stir in lots of salt and freshly ground pepper, and garnish with the reserved sliced green onions. Enjoy hot or at room temperature.

What is quinoa? Read this description...

"Quinoa: A Sacred, Super Crop" by Nicole Spiridakis on NPR.org 

Mujadarrah: Lentils, Rice, and Onions

This simple Middle Eastern dish has very few ingredients. It's made with lentils, rice, and onions, plus a little olive oil and some salt and pepper. The recipe is uncomplicated. You boil lentils and rice in salted water. Meanwhile, you fry some onions. Then, you stir everything together and add black pepper. That's the whole recipe. It's quite simple. In fact, it's almost too simple. It's so simple that you might expect it to be a bit blah. But prepare to be surprised. This plain-Jane recipe produces delightful results. It is rich and earthy and entirely satisfying.

French green lentils are ideal in this dish because they have a firm texture and hold their shape nicely. Brown lentils are a fine alternative, but they'll produce a slightly mushier finished dish. Lentils are full of protein, which makes this an excellent vegetarian main course. The rice in the recipe provides a bright, starchy accompaniment to the lentils. Long-grain white rice works well, as does brown rice. At the heart of this dish is the onions. Dark ribbons of deeply-caramelized onions should punctuate every bite. Ordinary yellow onions cook down nicely without falling apart. The onions should sizzle slowly in olive oil until they are very brown and soft. Finally, a good amount of freshly ground black pepper is an absolute must. It adds a spicy note and focuses the flavor of the dish.

Now, for a side dish. And a story. My family was visiting last weekend and I decided to prepare mujadarrah with a cucumber salad for dinner. My mouth was watering at the thought of cucumbers with a garlicky yogurt dressing, but there was a problem. I had gone to the store earlier and bought a cucumber for the salad, but it was nowhere to be found. I searched high and low, with no luck. My mom suggested that I might have left the cucumber at the store. Or, perhaps it had rolled out of the bag of groceries and been forgotten in the car. She volunteered to go out and look for it. After a few minutes, she came back into the house. "I looked everywhere," she said. Then, in a somber voice, "I regret to inform you that your cucumber has been the victim of a hit and run accident." My poor cucumber had fallen out of the bag onto the street outside my house and been run over by a car! It was very sad. It was sad for the poor, mangled cucumber. It was sad for those who had wanted to eat the cucumber. In the end, we bought a replacement cucumber for the salad. It tasted bright and fresh alongside the heavier flavors of the mujadarrah. I definitely recommend the combination. Just do your best to keep your cucumber safe from reckless motorists.

Mujadarrah

Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. Serves 2 as a main course or 4 as a side dish.

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large or two medium onions, halved from pole to pole and sliced crosswise
• 2 cups water
• 2/3 cup lentils
• 1/3 cup long-grain rice
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the onions in a large skillet with the olive oil. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Cook over medium-high heat until the onions begin to brown. Turn the heat down to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are a deep brown color. The heat should be high enough that you can hear the onions sizzle, but not so high that the onions become charred. It should take 20-30 minutes for the onions to fully caramelize. Turn off the heat and set the onions aside until the rice and lentils are finished cooking.

While the onions are cooking, bring two cups of water to a boil in a saucepan with a lid. Add 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Add the lentils, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then, stir in the rice, cover the pot, and simmer 15 minutes more. (Brown rice version: Use the same amount of water and salt. Add the brown rice to the water, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then, stir in the lentils, cover the pot, and simmer 30 minutes more.)

When the rice and lentis are cooked, stir in about two thirds of the caramelized onions and lots of black pepper. Stir very gently so the lentils don't fall apart. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Serve the mujadarrah in a big bowl with the remaining one third of the onions piled on top.

Cucumber Salad
Serves 2 to 4.

• 1 English cucumber, peeled or not, according to taste
• kosher salt
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2-3 ounces of plain greek yogurt

Slice the cucumber lengthwise into fourths or eighths. Slice the cucumber crosswise to make bite-sized pieces. Place the cucumber in a colander in the sink, sprinkle with half a teaspoon of salt, and toss to coat. After about 30 minutes, some water will have drained from the cucumber and it will be very crisp. In a medium-sized bowl, stir the cucumber together with the garlic and a few big spoonfuls of yogurt. Taste and add more salt if necessary. 

Russian Cabbage Soup

This cabbage soup, or shchi, is a good soup. It tastes good. It's full of good, healthy, vegetables. The ingredients cost next to nothing. And it's easy to make.

You should make some of this soup right now, even if you're not hungry, because you will certainly want some later, after the flavors have melded a bit and the soup begins to call to you from the stove top or the refrigerator: "Eat me right now. I am hearty and delicious. I will not disappoint. I am a good soup."

I'll admit that the words "cabbage soup" wouldn't ordinarily set my appetite on fire and send me running for a wooden spoon and a stockpot. But the combination of flavors in this soup succeeds in turning ho-hum cabbage into something special. Leeks and carrots lend the soup mild sweetness. A tomato adds bright acidic flavor. And a modest addition of sauerkraut gives the soup a hefty tang that enhances the flavor of the fresh cabbage. A blob of sour cream and a sprinkling of fresh dill provide the finishing touches that make this soup sing.

Darra Goldstein notes that shchi is "the most Russian of soups." Traditionally, winter versions of this soup are made with fermented cabbage only, while summer versions forgo the fermented stuff in favor of lots of fresh cabbage. Goldstein's recipe combines fresh and fermented cabbage to produce a light soup with rich undertones. To make the soup, begin by softening a carrot, a leek, and an onion in butter. Then add beef stock, a chopped tomato, some sauerkraut, and heaps of raw cabbage. Simmer the soup until the cabbage is tender. Very simple, very tasty. And, happily, cabbage is very good for you. Yay.

Russian Cabbage Soup

Adapted from A Taste of Russia: A Cookbook of Russian Hospitality by Darra Goldstein. Serves 4 to 6.

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 small leek, white part only, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
• 1 small carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
• 5 cups beef stock (or vegetable stock, if you prefer)
• 1 small head of white cabbage (about 3/4 pound), quartered, core removed, and thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup fresh sauerkraut, drained but not rinsed
• 1 tomato
• salt and pepper to taste
• sour cream for garnish
• chopped fresh dill for garnish

Melt the butter in a large stockpot and stir in the onions, leeks, and carrots. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften. Do not let the vegetables brown.

Meanwhile, cut a small "x" in the skin at the bottom of the tomato and submerge it in boiling water until the skin begins to curl. Remove the tomato from the water and peel the skin away with your fingers, then slice the tomato in half and squeeze out the seeds. Chop the tomato coarsely. You can use canned tomatoes or a few tablespoons of tomato paste in a pinch, but fresh tomato is really nice in this soup.

Turn the burner to high and add 5 cups of beef stock to the pot with the onions, leeks and carrots. Stir in the cabbage, sauerkraut, and tomato. When the soup comes to a boil, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. The soup is ready when the cabbage is tender. The soup is overdone when the cabbage is a mushy, soggy mess. Try to avoid this sad fate. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Ladle the soup into serving bowls, then put a dollop of sour cream in each bowl. Don't skip the sour cream if you can help it, but if you do choose to leave it out, try adding a little bit of sauerkraut juice or a dash of vinegar to the soup to get the right salty/sour/sweet balance. Sprinkle with finely chopped dill and serve.