French Onion Soup

1 garlic clove, halved

1 bay leaf, scored

2 sprigs thyme

Cheesecloth

Twine

4 medium onions, sliced

Grapeseed oil, as needed

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup dry sherry

6 cups veal stock or beef stock (home-made or store-bought, see note below)

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Toasted 1-inch croutons to cover the soup bowl

Emmental or Gruyere cheese, as needed

Note: When using store-bought stock, please reduce to a third of the original volume. For example, for 6 cups of stock use 18 cups of store-bought beef stock and reduce.

Tie the garlic clove, bay leaf and thyme in a sachet of cheesecloth with twine. Set aside.

Remove the center germ of the onions and slice the onions into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

In a cold heavy-bottom large saucepan, add enough grapeseed oil to coat the bottom.

Add all the sliced onions to the cold saucepan. Be sure to separate all the pieces. Cook on high heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so the onion does not burn. Reduce heat to medium to caramelize gradually.

When the onion has caramelized to a golden-brown color, add 1/4 cup butter to the saucepan and salt to taste. Deglaze with dry sherry and add the beef stock and simmer 20 to 30 minutes with the cheesecloth sachet of aromatics.

Add Worcestershire sauce.

Build the soup in oven-safe bowls, top with croutons and 4 to 5 slices of cheese.

Place the soup bowls on a baking tray in the oven and set to broil so that the cheese melts over the edges of the bowl an caramelizes on the top. Serve.

(Recipe courtesy of Ludo Lefebvre)

(Photo courtesy of Chloe Crespi)