Onion Soup with Bread and Fontina Pasticciata

I prepared this soup a couple of months ago when we were still having some cooler weather. I dearly love a good French Onion Soup but this one is so much more than an Onion soup. It comes from a cookbook of one of my favorite chefs, Lidia Bastianich. This particular cookbook has become one of my favorites.

This soup was outstanding and my new favorite Onion Soup. I used baby portobello's which gave the soup a wonderful flavor. In the directions it says to add salt, my advice is to be very careful about it because the Fontina is salty too. I loved the use of Fontina; I usually use a Gruyere or Mozzarella. Fontina is perfection and another reason this soup was so different. I hope you'll try it; you won't regret it if you love French Onion Soup.

Onion Soup with Bread and Fontina Pasticciata


4 TABLESPOONS UNSALTED BUTTER

2 TABLESPOONS EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

4 LARGE SWEET ONIONS, THICKLY SLICED

10 OUNCES WHITE MUSHROOMS, SLICED

1 TABLESPOON CHOPPED FRESH THYME LEAVES

KOSHER SALT

FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER

1/2 CUP DRY WHITE WINE

4 CUPS CHICKEN STOCK, PREFERABLY HOMEMADE, OR LOW-SODIUM STORE-BOUGHT

12 SLICES STALE ITALIAN BREAD, ABOUT 1/2 INCH THICK, FROM A LONG OVAL LOAF

8 OUNCES ITALIAN FONTINA, GRATED

1/4 CUP FRESHLY GRATED GRANA PADANO


Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Heat the butter and olive oil in a low, wide Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the onions, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 15 to 17 minutes. Add the mushrooms. Increase the heat to medium. Cook and stir until the mushrooms and onions are dark golden, about 10 minutes more. Add the thyme, and season with salt and pepper. Add the white wine, and simmer until it’s almost completely reduced, about 2 minutes. Add the stock, and simmer until the onions are very tender and the soup is thick, 12 to 15 minutes.



Toast the bread on the oven rack until just golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Toss the fontina and Grana Padano together in a medium bowl. Set the pieces of bread on top of the soup, starting at the edges, then filling in the middle. Sprinkle with the cheese mixture. Bake in the oven until the cheese is browned and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Spoon the bread and soup into wide soup bowls to serve. This soup can also be poured into individual ramekins, then topped with the bread and cheese and baked.
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It is important to prep for any recipe, everything goes together so much easier.

Browning the onions is probably the most important part of this recipe. It imparts a wonderful sweetness to any onion soup recipe.

Adding the mushrooms and the fresh herbs add an extra level of flavor. I do have an herb garden and I tie my herbs together with twine and remove it before ready to serve.

Simmering in chicken stock makes for even more deliciousness. I do indeed like a French Onion Soup just as it is, but the addition of the mushrooms put it right over the top for me. I will prepare this recipe during the Fall and Winter months. It is a KEEPER!!!

Keep it in mind when those Fall cooler temperatures roll around. Hopefully soon, this is one recipe I will prepare repeatedly. It is absolutely delicious and a little different from most French Onion Soups. You won't be disappointed. And get this book if you are so inclined there are many recipes that I want to try. Lidia's books are awesome.

Pared with a side salad with your favorite dressing it makes for a perfect dinner IMO.

I hope you will try this recipe; I thought it was amazing. The fontina cheese made it so much different, and I think from now on I will only use fontina cheese.

I think over the next few weeks I will be trying more recipes from this book, and I would love to hear what you think of them. We're getting closer to the weekend. I hope each of you have an excellent weekend.

Carolyn/A Southerner's Notebook