Vegetarian French Onion Soup Recipe

This recipe makes a small batch suitable for a couple of people with some leftover for next time.

First, SLICE a whole medium sweet yellow onion into thin slices, then CHOP the pieces so they will fit easily on a soup spoon.

Second, SAUTE in the bottom of saucepan with a little olive oil and a sprinkling of salt until they are very soft and almost caramelized (browning because they are releasing their sugars).

Third, ADD in one tablespoon of soy sauce and about one teaspoon of a good quality Dijon mustard and COOK two or three minutes to allow the flavors to combine.

Fourth, POUR four cups of vegetable broth into the saucepan.

When the broth comes to boil, the soup is ready. ADD salt and pepper before serving, if necessary.

SERVE topped with a large crouton or two (see below) and then a generous sprinkling of grated mozzarella or Swiss cheese.

A few notes:

• The Dijon mustard is the secret ingredient! French Onion Soup is often made with beef broth, but in this recipe, the mustard adds the richness that the vegetable broth may lack.
• To be more traditional, you could sauté the onions in butter instead of olive oil, but this isn’t necessary.
• To make the large croutons, slice dry French or similar bread into half-inch pieces, sauté in a little olive oil or brush with olive oil and broil.
• For this recipe, I like vegetable broth made from Knorr Vegetarian Vegetable Boullion Cubes. If you use something else, you may need to some additional ingredients to get a rich enough taste. You can often find these cubes in the Jewish section of the grocery store in tiny packages.
• A little dried thyme added with the soy sauce and mustard gives the soup some additional flavor.
• Use sliced cheese as a topping instead of shredded cheese and broil in the oven a few minutes. Works great as long as you use an oven-proof dish.