Onion soup is one of the most satisfying cold weather meals I can think of. It reminds of dark restaurants with the leatherette banquettes that you used to sit on as a kid. No fancy riffs here. This is as authentic as you can get. The most important ingredients are the stock and the onions (obviously). If you screw up either one it will fail. I was drilled in this method by my francophone masters in Scottsdale, Arizona. Could I just say right now that I hate Arizona. The choice of stock is up to you. My personal preference is for veal stock. But the standard preparations also include chicken stock, beef stock or a combination of two. Make the stock one day ahead [recipe to follow] Chill it in the refrigerator and do a final skim of the fat cap that has formed. <br /> <br />The next key step involves caramelizing the onions. Don’t rush this. It’s going to take at least 40 minutes to have them just right. I can’t emphasize that enough. After that it’s easy. You’ve probably seen this soup served with a big slab of Swiss cheese melting on top. You can do it that way, but don’t invite me over. Also this dish breaks a number of rules in the kashrut so don’t ignorantly serve it to your observant Jewish friends. I’m not saying this to be politically correct but rather because I think it’s important to understand that the food values (as well as allergies etc.) that your guests bring to the table are as important as you being master of the kitchen. Food should be nourishing and not a threat to either your faith or your mortal coil. As much as I would like to run over every vegan non-meatatarian with my car, I probably won’t be doing that soon. Okay, I promise. <br />

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