French Onion Soup

Chef Pierre Molin,
Red Lantern Restaurant

While preparing his french onion soup, Chef Pierre regaled his audience with interesting jokes and facts, one of which was that the number of folds in a chefs hat refers to the number of ways he or she can prepare potatoes.

Ingredients
Broth
5-8 large white onions, julienned
6 litres water
2 Tbsp beef base
2 Tbsp gravy base
4 Tbsp chicken base
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp curry powder
2 Tbsp paprika
3 shakes Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup red wine

Topping (per serving)
1 thin slice of french bread, toasted
2 swiss cheese slices
1 Tbsp dry sherry
1 tsp grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp parsley, chopped

Method
1.  In an 8-litre stock pot, add onions. Julienned onions should fill 1/3 of pot.
2.  Add water and all other ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until onions are cooked and broth has reduced by 1/8th (approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour).
3.  Preheat oven to 400˚F.
4.  Into a french onion soup bowl, ladle in broth.
5.  Place toasted bread on top of soup. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp sherry on bread. Cover top of bowl with two slices of swiss cheese. Sprinkle parmesan and parsley on swiss cheese slices.
6.  Bake in oven until cheese has melted and turned golden brown (about 6-7 minutes). Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Yield  20 servings