Cheesy Potato and Thyme Pavé Bread

This Cheesy Potato and Thyme Pavé Bread is so soft and moist, and of course, cheesy!

This potato, thyme, and cheese pavé bread is delicious for dinner rolls, toast, and even sandwiches, and it stays fresh for days.

Bastounakia with Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

These Bastounakia are Greek in origin, and are layered with olive oil and herbs. This bread is super crusty and is perfect served warm from the oven. 

Bastounakia are a Greek bread made with a lean and sticky dough, spread with olive oil, and sprinkled with salt and herbs. I filled these with a combination of parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme in honor of one of my all time favorite record albums ever.

Sweet Onion Galette with Parmesan and Mascarpone

This sweet onion galette is filled with two and a half pound of onions that have been slowly caramelized for 40 minutes (or more) to bring out their sweet flavor. 

While you can't see it, underneath the caramelized onions is a bed of Parmesan and mascarpone cream. The Parmesan cream adds such a nice richness to the filling.

Thyme and Apple Cider Pisco Sour

This Thyme and Apple Cider Pisco Sour is a wonderful celebration cocktail.

This apple cider Pisco sour is a wonderful winter cocktail. If you like whiskey sours or side car cocktails, you'll enjoy this one with thyme simple syrup, Pisco, fresh lemon juice, and boiled apple cider.

Gruyère, Roasted Pepper, and Thyme Muffins

These Gruyère, Roasted Pepper, and Thyme Muffins are a wonderful savory breakfast or lunch treat. 

These Gruyère, Roasted Pepper, and Thyme Muffins are wonderful with eggs and bacon for breakfast, or a green salad for lunch.

Cheese Straws with Parmesan, Gruyere, and Thyme

These Cheese Straws with Parmesan, Gruyere, and Thyme are a wonderful appetizer, and so easy to make with frozen puff pastry. 

These are delicious with a glass of wine or a cocktail. They are really easy to make using frozen puff pastry, although making your own homemade puff pastry is kind of a revelation.

Crispy Herb and Sugar Plum Grape Tomato Focaccia

This crispy Herb and Sugar Plum Grape Tomato Focaccia originally had the descriptor "thin" in it as well, but when I slid it onto the baking stone, it puffed up like crazy! This is not a bad thing. The bread is full of amazing, amazing (yes, I said amazing twice, and now a third time) airiness.

Baked Whole Rainbow Trout with Shallots, Herbs, and Jalapeño

This Baked Whole Trout with Shallots, Herbs, and Jalapeño is so moist, succulent, and flavorful. It is also amazingly easy to make.

When I was growing up, our family used to take summer vacations at Lake Tahoe, usually renting a house on the lake. One memory that stands out for me is my dad taking us kids fishing at a Lake Tahoe trout farm. 

Pizza Cipolla | Onion Pizza

When I tasted this Pizza Cipolla, I had one of those jump up and down, "oh-em-gee this is so freaking good" moments.

I kind of suspected it would be good when it was baking, because the aroma coming from my oven was spectacular.

French Onion Soup

French onion soup is my all time favorite. I love the caramelized onion flavor, the toasted baguette croutons, and the gooey gruyere cheese on top. The beef broth is sweetly flavored with fresh thyme.

This soup is really tasty, looks elegant, and the base can can be made in advance, making it really easy to prepare for company. Why haven't I made this before (she says, smacking herself in the forehead)?

Thank goodness for Secret Recipe Club led by Sarah of Fantastical Sharing of Recipes, who works really hard to keep things going. It's a group of bloggers who are assigned another member's blog from which to choose a recipe to make once a month. We all reveal whom we had on the same day and at the same time. This was the impetus I needed to make my all time favorite soup.

My assigned blogger is Susan of Food, Baby, Life. She is raising three boys, all under 5 years old, and lives in Australia. She's actually been blogging for almost six years! Now that she is a mom, she likes to cook healthy, but I'll forgive her for that (just kidding Susan!). She also has been an avid Tuesdays with Dorie baker. Just check out her Recipe Index.

I immediately chose Susan's French Onion Soup, and I'm so glad I did. Delicious!

French Onion Soup Recipe

Adapted from Food, Baby, Life, who adapted it from Taste.com 

Serves 6 to 8 as a starter, and 4 to 6 as a main course. 

Ingredients

6 T unsalted butter

4 very large brown onions, peeled and sliced crossways into rings

3 garlic cloves, sliced and crushed

1 tsp sugar

3 T all purpose flour

1/2 C dry red wine

6 C beef stock

1 bouquet garni (a few sprigs of thyme, parsley, and bay leaves tied together or wrapped in cheesecloth)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 good baguette, sliced on the diagonal in 1/2 inch slices

1 to 2 cups of freshly grated gruyere cheese (depending on how gooey you want your cheese to be. Next time, I'm adding more =)

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a large (6 to 8 quart) saucepan or saute pan over medium heat. 
2. Add the onions and garlic and sprinkle with the sugar. Cook, stirring regularly, until the onions are soft and a medium golden color, about 30 minutes (I veered a bit from the original recipe here, and cooked the onions quite a bit longer)
3. Add the flour, and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour is cooked through, about a minute or two. 
4. Add the wine, and cook for another minute or two. 
5. Add the broth and bouquet garni and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
6. Remove the bouquet garni and season with salt and pepper, to taste. 
7. Toast the baguette slices in a toaster, toaster oven, or under the broiler. If using the broiler, toast both sides. 
8. Place an oven rack about 6 to 8 inches below the broiler and turn it on. 
9. Fill broiler safe soup bowls or ramekins with the soup and top with two slices of the toasted baguette. Place a good handful of cheese in each bowl over the toast and soup. Place the bowls on a baking sheet, and broil for about a minute or two, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. If you don't have broiler safe bowls, you can sprinkle the toasts with the cheese, broil it, and place it on top of the soup. 

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