Recipe:: French Onion Soup

I know I have said this before but I don't like making soups.  And actually I don't even really like eating soup.  It's just not a type of dish I crave very often, but a few weeks ago, the weather was very wintry here in Jersey and I wanted soup.

As you probably know, I am a huge fan of Gina at Skinnytaste because her dishes are easy, but never lack on taste.  I found a recipe for French Onion soup, my husband's favorite!

I adapted it very slightly, but Dave loved the changes and said it was exactly what French Onion soup should taste like.  Score!  And it was even so delicious that it is on our menu for this week too.  Maybe this is a turning point for soup in my life.

Gina used swiss cheese for her soup, but we used a horseradish cheese from Cabot and it gave the soup a little extra kick.  We made grilled cheeses with that cheese too!

French Onion Soup
adapted from: Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes


Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds yellow onions, sliced thin
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 cup Cognac or brandy
• 1/4 cups white wine
• 4 cups beef stock
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

• 6 medium slices toasted Italian bread
• Horseradish Cheese (I used Cabot)

Directions: 

In a large pot, sauté the onions with the butter over medium heat, until the onions are soft and golden, about 20 minutes. Add flour, mixing well another 2-3 minutes. Add thyme, bay leaf, wine and brandy, and simmer uncovered for 10 more minutes.

Add the beef stock, salt & pepper to taste, reduce heat. Cover and simmer gently for about 20 minutes. Remove bay leaf and ladle 1-1/2 cups soup into 6 oven-proof bowls. Place bowls on a baking sheet. Place sliced toasted bread rounds into each bowl and top bread with cheese. Broil 2 to 3 minutes, until cheese melts.

Sweet Potato & Corn Chowder

Since the temperature in NJ has been more autumn like the past few days, we wanted to add a soup to this week's menu.  It takes a lot for me to absolutely love a soup, especially as a main event for dinner.  As we were going through our usual sites and books for recipes, I decided to look for a corn chowder recipe and I stumbled across a sweet potato & corn chowder.

Absolutely delicious!  I made a few variations to the recipe and am glad I did.  This was an absolutely delicious and filling chowder and will definitely be added to the frequently made recipes.

Ingredients:

Adapted from Stacie N. on hubpages

• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red pepper, diced (I added this to the recipe)
• 10 ounces frozen corn
• 3-4 small sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 cup water 1 cup chicken broth (I changed)
• 1/4 tsp. paprika
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2 tbs. flour
• 2 cups 1% milk

Directions

1. Saute onion, red pepper, and garlic in oil over medium heat, for two minutes
2. Add corn, potatoes, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and paprika. Bring to a boil on high heat.
3. Once it boils, reduce heat to medium. Cook, covered, about 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
4. In a small bowl, whisk flour into 1/2 cup of the milk, until smooth.
5. Gradually add the flour and milk mixture to the vegetables, stirring constantly.
6. Continue to stir as you add the rest of the milk, cooking until soup boils and thickens.
7. If desired, use a stick blender for about 5-10 seconds to blend.  (I added this step as well.  I think it gave it that extra blend of the flavors melding together!)