French onion soup might sound fancy, but it’s one of the easiest soups you can whip up, using ingredients you likely already have on hand.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp (15 mL) butter
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil
• 2 medium Spanish onions, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 sprig thyme
• 1 tsp (5 mL) kosher salt
• 1 tsp (5 mL) sugar
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) red wine
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) all-purpose flour
• 2 cups (500 mL) beef stock
• salt and pepper
• two–four 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick slices of baguette, toasted
• 2 oz (60 g) aged cheddar or Gruyere cheese, grated

Directions

1 Melt the butter and olive oil in a stockpot set over medium-high heat. Add the onions, bay leaf, thyme, salt and sugar, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until the onions begin to soften and colour. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for an additional 10–15 minutes, or until the onions are very caramelized.

2 Discard the bay leaf and stems from the thyme; pour in the wine, scraping the bottom of the pot as you stir to lift the browned bits from the bottom. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir to combine. Cook for 2 minutes.

3 Add the beef stock and bring the soup back up to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Taste and season the soup with salt and pepper, if necessary.

4 Preheat the broiler. Divide the soup evenly between two oven-safe bowls. Top each serving with a piece or two of bread and half of the grated cheese. Transfer bowls to a rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven. Cook until the cheese is golden brown and bubbly, about 2 minutes.

Serves: 2 

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Excerpted from Gatherings: Bringing People Together with Food by Jan Scott & Julie Van Rosendaal. Copyright © 2014 Jan Scott & Julie Van Rosendaal. Excerpted by permission of Whitecap Books, Vancouver. All rights reserved.