Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup

Once I made a soup entirely out of garlic. You could smell me coming from a mile away for weeks. That soup was made with ten bulbs of garlic, bacon drippings, heavy cream and topped with crumbled bacon. Then I served it with homemade bacon-cheddar bread. Whoa, that was one pungent meal.

This Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup was inspired by that meal. I wanted to recreate a dairy-free version of the soup but without the intensely, overwhelming garlic. Onions were the answer. The main thing to get right with this is the texture. I’m not a fan of completely pureed foods. You might as well serve a jar of baby food. So the trick is to only puree half and leave the rest in their sautéed state.

To add some crunch, I fried up an extra onion and used America’s Test Kitchen recipe for Crispy Onions. SO. Darn. GOOD!

Creamy Caramelized Onion SoupThis is the December edition of the Local Eats Project. Garlic and onions are abundant year-round in the Northeast. I picked up these two ingredients and a chicken for the broth at the farmers market. Everything else I purchased at my local food co-op.

If you’re new to the Local Eats Project you can find all the rules to play along here.  But basically, once per month I’m making one meal entirely from local foods.

Here are the farmer market ingredients I took home:
7 yellow onions         $03.75    ($2.50 per lb)
3 bulbs garlic                 $00.30    ($10 per lb)
1 chicken (for broth)      $17.65    ($4 per lb)

TOTAL $21.70

I’d love to see your Local Eats Project recipes! Post the recipe, photos and cost of your meal on your website or any social media site and share the love of local food, #localeatsproject.

Enjoy!


Click here for all the Local Eats Project recipes.

Local Eats Project

Local Eats Project

Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup

Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup
Serves 4
A creamy caramelized onion soup with an abundance of roasted garlic. Dairy-free and can be made vegan.
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr
Ingredients
  1. 1 ½ lb or 6 cups yellow onions (about 6 onions)
  2. 4 tbsp lard or coconut oil
  3. 3 tbsp roasted garlic
  4. 1 cup broth
  5. 1 tsp salt
  6. ½ tsp black pepper
  7. 2 tbsp dry white wine or apple cider vinegar
Instructions
  1. Roast the garlic in the oven at 350F for 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  2. In a large pot over medium-high heat, sauté the onions in three batches. Melt 1 tbsp of fat in the pan with each batch and sprinkle ¼ tsp of salt over each. Cook for 3 minutes.
  3. Puree the roasted garlic in a food processor than add half of the onions. Puree until creamy.
  4. Pour the puree into the pot with the sautéed onions. Heat to medium and add the broth, pepper, remaining fat and salt, and wine. Cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Serve topped with crispy onions.
Notes
  1. For the topping I used America’s Test Kitchen recipe for "Crispy Onions."
Sparkle Kitchen https://sparklekitchen.com/

Creamy Caramelized Onion Soup

Local Eats Project

Today is National Food Day! Hooray! In honor of this day, I’m launching a new project, the Local Eats Project.

Recently I learned that less than 1% of all food purchased in the U.S. comes from famers markets. I want to boost that number! This is the BEST quality food available and too many people are missing out. Food from farmers markets is far more nutritious – for our bodies, our minds, our wallets, our environment, our economies and our consciousness.

The Local Eats Project works like this: Once per month I will cook one meal made from 100% local foods, including fat/oil and as many fresh herbs and spices too.

I will share the recipe here on Sparkle Kitchen to keep me accountable and to show how simple it is to create a fabulous meal from seasonal ingredients.

These are the ground rules:

  • Cook one meal per month using only local, seasonal ingredients. 
  • Support local farmers by purchasing directly from them at famers markets.
  • Only use vegetables, meats, eggs, and fruits sold at local farmers market.
  • Salt, spices and fat/oil are the exception and can be purchased elsewhere. (Bonus points if these are local too, like lard, suet and schmaltz.)
  • Share it! Post the recipe, photos and cost of your meal on your website or any social media site and share the love of local food. #localeatsproject

That’s it!

Are you up for the challenge? 

Click here for all the Local Eats Project recipes.

AND if you need more convincing for why to eat and buy local, read my article here.

Local Eats Project