Gratinee a l'oignon (French Onion soup)

One of the perks of cold weather is that it is once again the season to enjoy the deliciousness that is French onion soup.

An absolute classic recipe that is best enjoyed after a day of skiing, hiking or really just plain lazy urban cocooning, it is one of the cheapest and satisfying meals I can think of!

Do try it. I promise you this will not be in vain :)

PS: on top of my regular point and shoot photography, my friend Rod came over to share some food and macro photography tips. Take a look at this!

Photographs by Rod Egret

INGREDIENTS (for 4 people, or 2 people for 2 meals)
- 1 1/2 lbs onions
- 2 large cloves of garlic
- 1/3 cup AP flour
- 1 cup white wine (I used Pinot Grigio, but you can use Riesling or even a red; if you are using a white though, use a dry wine not sweet)
- 8 cups beef broth (you can use vegetable broth if you wish to make a vegetarian version, but if you do eat meat, beef is the way to go!)
- 1/2 stick of butter
- a sprig of thyme and a bay leaf
- a stale French baguette, or any stale bread you can slice and shape into large croutons
- PLENTY of grated Alpine Gruyere (No, you really cannot use mozzarella, jack or cheddar on this... If you cannot find Gruyere, I guess an aged Parmesan would work, but you just cannot replicate the sweet, nutty, delicious flavor of Gruyere. It is really not that much of a splurge: I got the pictured slab for about 5.50 dollars at whole foods, and only used about half of it. For real!)


RECIPE:
- in a dutch oven or deep pot, melt the butter and saute the sliced onions over medium-high heat until golden brown and lightly caramelized (about 5-7 minutes)

- add the flour and the finely chopped garlic, mix and cook for another 2 minutes over medium heat, making sure it does not stick to the bottom

- deglaze the pot with the wine, then add the beef broth, thyme and bay leaf and simmer over medium heat for another 25-30 minutes

- after 30 minutes, the soup will have thickened and reduced a little in volulme, and the onions will be very tender

- place a crouton in the bottom of an oven-proof bowl and ladle the soup over it. Add another two croutons on top and smother in grated cheese (forgot to take a picture with the cheese, sorry!)

- melt the cheese under the broiler for a few minutes and look often! The croutons are very prone to burning... ahem...

- enjoy piping hot, with a nice glass of red wine!

Moussaka

What what?! An oven-baked dish right smack in the middle of a heat wave? Girl, you cray-cray!

But let me explain the rationale behind this rather unconventional choice for a meal in July:

July = hot = beautiful weather = beach = Mediterranean sea = Greece = Moussaka. See? Barely convoluted :D


INGREDIENTS (for 4 people):
- 2lbs eggplants
for the meat sauce: 
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 15oz can diced tomato, with juice
- 1 cup white wine
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/8 ground cinnamon
- salt and pepper to taste

for the white sauce:
- 2 cups of milk (normally whole, but I used skim)
- 1 egg, beaten
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1/3 cup AP flour
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon, salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup grated feta cheese


RECIPE:
- preheat your oven at 350F
- slice the eggplants thinly (~1/8 inch), salt them and put them on a dish cloth for an hour so they can release water

- in the mean time, fry the onion and garlic in the olive oil for a few minutes on medium-low heat, until translucent and soft

- add the meat and brown for a few minutes on high heat until cooked through

- add the remaining ingredients for the meat sauce, stir well and let simmer covered for about an hour on low heat

- while the meat sauce is cooking, prepare the white sauce: start with a roux. Melt the butter over medium heat, and add the flour, cinnamon, salt and pepper and cook for a few minutes. It will bubble and fluff up

- add the milk in one go, and whisk immediately to avoid lumps. cook for a few minutes on medium-low heat, until the sauce thickens to pancake batter consistency

- remove from heat and stir in the grated feta cheese and beaten egg; reserve on the side until ready to assemble the Moussaka

- when your white sauce is cooling and the meat sauce is finishing cooking, shallow fry the eggplant slices (patted dry). To minimize the oil intake, I used a cooking spray and fried the slices in batch, about 1-2 minutes per side over medium-high heat

- you can now proceed to the assembly: start with a layer of eggplants, and spread half of the meat sauce on top, then add a second eggplant layer, other half of the meat sauce and finish with a third eggplant layer. Pour the white sauce on top and smooth out with a spatula


- bake in a 350F oven for an hour, until beautifully golden

- enjoy!!

PS: this keeps extremely well and tastes even better reheated. You can also freeze leftovers in batches and enjoy your Moussaka during cold winter days :)