Hearty Beefy Onion Soup

I must be really attuned to my Inner Furry Woodland Creature Instincts. That's gotta be it.

Why else as soon as Fall hits do I have this incredible urge to gather & preserve food for the winter?

So yeah, that must be it.

Last week was the Gumbo this week it's Soup. Warning; there may be more posts to come.....:)

This recipe is yummy, smells great whilst cooking, and is unbelievably easy. And especially take advantage of your local farmer's markets as fall staples are SUPER cheap right now. Perfect for chopping and preserving/freezing.

You'll need.: Large stockpot with lid, sharp knife, cutting board.

4-5 large shallots

4-5 large onions

1-2 red onion

2 containers beef stock (I used Campbell's reduced Sodium)

4-5 big ol' carrots

5 celery branches

Black pepper, hot sauce, garlic (all to taste)

Burnt Caramel sauce

cooking sherry

1/4 cup butter

3 tsp brown sugar (if you want more of a savoury soup, omit the sugar, but I like the layer of flavour.)

Prep:

Have all onions chopped in 'rings' about 1/4 inch or 1/2 inch wide.

Shallots chopped in rings 1/4 inch.

Chunky cut your carrots & celery.

Over medium-high heat, melt your butter. Add your shallots & onions, stir, put on lid. Reduce heat to medium if it starts to burn.

After about 5 mins, stirring occasionally, add a few dashes of caramel sauce, a good sousing of the sherry, and the sugar. Stir well, add lid. Watch and stir occasionally.

After about ten minutes, add the celery and carrots, again stir well. Add in the pepper, garlic, and a dash or two of hotsauce, stir well. Replace lid. If you haven't yet, reduce heat to medium.

After veggies have turned 'bright' (after about ten mins) add the stock; stirring well.

Bring it to a boil, with the lid on, and then let it simmer for a few hours. 

Before serving, reheat to medium & stir; the butter may be separated but as you reheat and stir it will go back 'in' to the soup. Serve with crusty bread!

Yes, it's THAT good!