French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup
Serves 4

• 3 large red onions or 4 medium ones
• 1 quart of beef stock
• 2 tbsp of vegetable oil
• pinch of sugar
• 1/3 cup of apple cider (or red wine)
• 2 tbsp of French or Italian seasonings and a bay leaf
• 1 chopped garlic clove or 1 tsp garlic power
• Parmesan cheese (or other type of shredded cheese)
• Thick bread (optional)
• Brie or other type of soft cheese (optional)

1. Cut the red onions into long strips from pole to pole
2. Heat the oil in a large, heavy bottom pot on medium to medium high heat
3. Add all of the onions and cook for 35-40 minutes, stirring constantly
4. After 10 minutes, add the sugar to help caramelize the onions
5. After the 35-40 minutes, add the apple cider or wine and scrap the brown fonds from the bottom and sides of the pot into the liquid
6. Add the stock, seasonings and garlic and cook for another 20 minutes
7. Slice the bread and soft cheese and arrange on a plate
8. Serve the hot soup in a bowl with Parmesan on top and enjoy with the bread and cheese

I love my mom's homemade soup. It takes an hour to cook and and the constant stirring is tiring but this soup is delicious! So much better than soup from the French Onion mix... It makes for good leftovers as well.

This is possibly my favorite recipe that I've ever made.

4 red onions: $3.90 at Fred Meyer

3 cups of beef stock + 1 more cup: $3.28 + $1.09 = $4.37 at Fred Meyer

Apple Cider, 1/5 of a carton at $3.69/carton = $0.74 at Fred Meyer

Vegetable Oil, about $0.15

Seasonings, about $0.50

Parmesan, about $0.30

Garlic Powder, about $0.15

Sugar, about $0.05

Total Cost for Soup: $10.16 for 4 servings or $2.54 per serving

1/2 loaf of French Bread at $1.99/loaf = $1.00 at Fred Meyer

1/2 wheel of Brie Cheese at $6.49/wheel = $3.25 at Fred Meyer

Total Cost for the whole meal: $14.41 for 4 servings or $3.60 per serving