A Lil' Bowl o' Brown Onion Bliss

I made french onion soup tonight. If you like a touch of class and a rich depth of flavors for a romantic dinner, then this recipe is for you. And it costs little to make! The ingredients in this recipe come in under $10; at a restaurant this dish would easily be $40. I cooked the onions for over an hour! Now that your appetite's whetted, go gather these ingredients and get to work posthaste: brown onion bliss awaits you!

Ingredients

• 10 tbs. of margarine.
• ½ cup cooking sherry, ¼ cup cooking sherry.
• ½ cup white cooking wine.
• 4 cups vegetable stock.
• 4 lbs. white or yellow (not red!) onions.
• 1 fresh clove of garlic.
• 1 sprig of thyme.
• 1 bay leaf.
• Fresh black peppercorns.
• Kosher sea salt.
• 1 loaf French bread.
• 1lb. Münster cheese.

Ideally, the herbs and onions in this recipe should be hand-grown by either yourself or a neighbor; likewise all other ingredients should come from organic sources if possible.

Instructions

1. In a large pot, melt 1 (one) stick of margarine over low heat.
2. While margarine melts, cut the tops and bottoms off onions, peel, and slice lengthwise. Slices should be exactly ⅓" wide.
3. Add sliced onions to pot with melted margarine.
4. Set timer for 45 minutes and set to low heat with lid. Stir occasionally. Onions should turn translucent.
5. Set timer for 30 minutes and set to medium heat with lid. Stir occasionally. Onions should brown lightly.
6. With 10 minutes left in step 5, add 2 tbs. margarine to pan on medium heat.
7. Bruise bay leaf and add to pan.
8. Crush fresh black peppercorns and add to pan.
9. Crush fresh garlic clove and add to pan.
10. Crush fresh thyme and add to pan.
11. Sauté bay leaf, peppercorns, garlic, and thyme for five (5) minutes.
12. Add vegetable stock to pan and bring to a simmer for five (5) minutes.
13. Add 1 tbs. kosher sea salt to pan.
14. Add 1 tbs. kosher sea salt, ½ cup cooking sherry, and ½ cup white cooking wine to onions and cook on medium heat for five (5) minutes without lid.
    (Onions should be brown and reduced by this point. If not, you did something wrong.)
15. Pour contents of pan into onions through a colander. Set herbs aside. Cook pot on medium heat for ten minutes with lid.
16. Remove lid and set to low heat.
17. In a toaster oven, toast sliced or diced bread for five (5) minutes at 350º.
18. While bread toasts, shred 1 cup of Münster cheese.
19. Serve soup in a bowl or ramekin with toasted bread covered in shredded cheese. Soup is ready to eat when cheese is melted. Salt and pepper to taste.