Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Soupe A L’Oignon

 I was really excited to try this recipe. Who wouldn't be? French onion soup is everywhere, most of it bad, so I wanted to try the authentic article. I went to the regular grocery store and bought a big bag of sweet onions, Central Market for a French baguette, and the liquor store for the vermouth and cognac.

The onions were sweet enough that I didn't really cry while slicing five tons of them, thank goodness. I think that's the worst part of cooking with onions. I have heard a rumor though that if you cut the root last, you'll cry less. Old wives' tale? Probably.

This soup isn't difficult, but it does take a while, mostly due to the caramelization of the onions. Here I must wax ecstatic about the Le Creuset pot, as it browned the onions, created the nice browned bits on the bottom of the pan, and didn't burn. Bonus points for the pot. After the caramelization, everything came together pretty quickly.

I did veer away from Julia's recipe in just one respect. When making the bread and cheese crouton toppers for the individual soups, I used Gruyere cheese instead of Swiss or Parmesan. I seem to remember reading somewhere that it's really good on onion soup, and plus, doesn't it still count as a Swiss cheese?

The result of my efforts was an incredibly rich and hearty soup, perfect for a winter's day. The onion were sweet, and the beef broth (yes, I used canned!) had picked up all the flavors, including the liquors. I was very impressed, and I think I'm ruined for this soup anywhere else.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Potage Parmentier

I decided to start trying some more recipes from the good old Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and since I’m not a big fan of soup, I figured I would start there.  Hey, if anyone is going to convince me to eat soup, it’s Julia.  I got a huge Idaho russet potato and a bunch of leeks at the local grocery store. I peeled and cubed the potato and dumped it in my mom's Le Creuset pot.  The leeks were a little more of a pain to prep because they get sand down between their leaves. I cut the green parts off, sliced them in half lengthwise, and then washed them one at a time, being careful to get down between the layers. After that they were chopped and thrown in the pot.

Everything was simmered for about 40 minutes, and then it came time for the food mill. Only problem? I couldn't find mine. So I improvised and used my mom's immersion blender. It's almost the same, right? Right?

When it was time to enrich the soup, I decided to go half and half with the whipping cream and butter because I wanted BOTH. I like to walk on the edge.  A little leftover chervil on top was the garnish.

Well, the soup was delicious, creamy and comforting in all its simplicity. You could taste the leeks in the background, which kept it from being boring. And even though I have never had this soup before, it seemed somehow homey, like something you've had as a child. The only problem was that the immersion blender didn't get out the stringy leek bits that the food mill would have removed. Lesson learned.

Truluck's Fancy Fish

Tonight my family went to Truluck's for some delicious seafood. Unfortunately, the crab was just a little bit too pricey for my taste. Lucky for me, the fish sounded fabulous. I choose the Texas Striped Bass Pontchartrain. This is a fried striped bass fillet topped with a spicy sauce made from shrimp, crawfish, and crab. The fish is served over crab fried rice. The dish was pretty spicy, but oh so rich and delicious.

Chocolate Delight

When I think about dessert, I think chocolate. And some of the best chocolate I've ever had has come from a chocolatier named J. Dorian. He has a little shop in North Dallas, and when I originally discovered him, he only offered chocolate candies like truffles and chocolate-dipped corn flakes. Now he has taken chocolate to the next level: cupcakes! So delicious. The cake was moist and tasty, and the icing was sweet and buttery. This is the real thing.