I've been a terrible blogger. Frankly, I'm not even sure I can call myself a blogger anymore. I'm too preoccupied with my family and full-time gig, but the itch is still there. Every time I cook something, I think to myself, "I should pull out my camera. Remember when I used to that? Why don't I do that anymore? It was so fun!"
Then... I don't do it, and I regret not having a photo to share. Or I snap something super quick on my phone and hate the way it came out, so I don't bother posting. Instagram gives me a bit of satisfaction, but it's just not the same.
Turning off comments hasn't helped either. Sure, now I'm not managing any spam, but I'm also not interacting with anyone, which was my favorite part of blogging!
So for the holidays, I decided to turn comments back on -- hopefully, they work! -- leave me a quick hello below if you feel so inclined. It would totally make my day.
The recipe I'm sharing today, French Onion and Mushroom Soup, is a Christmas Eve tradition in my house.
Every year we make the same thing, onion soup, fried fish, crab legs, shrimp cocktail, and roasted cauliflower. Sometimes I'll also throw in some Crab Balls if I'm feeling especially motivated.
The onion soup I make is always a variation of the one below. I like the addition of mushrooms to bump up my veggie intake. It also allows you to melt cheese on top without the addition of bread because the mushrooms can hold it up pretty well. That said, it's also good straight up with no cheese! I adjust how I eat it based on my macro needs for that day. I like having options.
Here are some photos from 2013 when I originally shared this recipe.
Anyway, here's the recipe. I'm going to try to post more regularly through the holidays, especially because I have a break from classes. I'm just going to have to learn to go with the flow of my school schedule and take advantage of the times I can be more active in the kitchen and on the blog. It's not worth stressing about, I'll take a page from my own book and just do what I can when I can.
French Onion and Mushroom Soup
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 14 cups
French Onion and Mushroom Soup is a fun twist on traditional French Onion. Serve it straight up, with bread, cheese, or bread and cheese!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp oil
- 4 large onions
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 1 cup red wine
- 1 lb mushrooms
- 8 cups beef stock/broth
Instructions
Heat a soup pot over medium heat and add the butter and oil.
Slice one of the onions as thinly as possible.
Add them to the pot and sprinkle a little salt.
Repeat with each onion, layering them with a pinch of salt in the pot.
Once finished, stir them all together add the bay leaves and let everything slowly cook over medium to medium-low heat for at least 1 hour, stirring about every 20 minutes or so.
After an hour the onions will have reduced and darkened in color.
Roughly chopped the musrooms and add to the onions with the 1 cup of wine.
Let the mushrooms and wine cook down for about 10 minute before adding the beef broth.
After adding the beef broth, bring everything to a light boil then lowered to a simmer until ready to serve.
Notes
- You can use all sweet onions or vary them. I like to do a mix of sweet, red and spanish.
- Use wine you would drink!
- I like to use my own beef stock but I've made it successfully with beef broth. If you don't have enough beed broth a mix of beef and chicken would work too but the beef stock adds a deeper flavor.
- Use veggie stock to make it vegetarian.
- When I do top with cheese I like provolone but you can use any cheese your like. The best is to toast a baguette slice, plot it in and then melt the cheese over top. You can see how I do this is an old IG story I posted last year.
- Which reminds me, you could totally skip the mushrooms if you want to make a more traditional French Onion soup. I did last year.
Courses Any
Cuisine Any
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size ~1 cup
Amount Per Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
Calories 90 | ||
% Daily Value | ||
Total Fat 3 g | 5% | |
Total Carbohydrates 9 g | 3% | |
Dietary Fiber 1 g | 4% | |
Sugars 5 g | ||
Protein 3 g | 6% | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Thank you for the recipe. I enjoy "hearing" from you when you post. Have a wonderful holiday.
Never thought of adding shrooms, yum! Thanks for taking the time to share! Merry Christmas! ???
A handful of your recipes are staples for me, and every time I make one I think of you, and wonder what you and your family are up to! Its wonderful to hear from you and also to hear that things are going well. Enjoy your holiday break!