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1
Peel the onions and slice thin.
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2
Heat the beef broth in a large soup kettle.
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3
Melt 8 T. butter in large, heavy skillet, add the onions and sprinkle with nutmeg.
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4
Cover and cook over low heat until onions are translucent and soft.
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5
Stir occasionally to make sure that all the onions cook evenly.
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6
Caramelize the onions as follows: turn heat up to high and add 1-2 t. sugar and 1/2 t. salt to cooked onions.
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7
Stir constantly and continue cooking until onions are deep brown.
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8
Be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to get up any bits of caramel, which adds enormously to the flavor.
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9
When the onions are a lovely, glistening color, remove from heat and stir in 3 T. flour.
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10
Return to stove over medium heat, and add a bit of the beef broth, which has been heated (just enough to collect all scrapings from the bottom of the pan and wet the onions).
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11
Now add the onions to your large kettle of boiling beef broth.
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12
Stir in the dry vermouth and Kitchen Bouquet.
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13
(If you're really tired out by now, you can stop here and eat a bit.
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14
The soup will be lovely, but tradition demands a cheesy addition as follows).
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15
Pour the soup into a heavy, oven proof casserole (preferably an enamel one) and gently fold in the Swiss and most of the Gruyere cheeses.
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16
Cover the entire top with garlic-flavored croutons.
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17
Top the croutons with the remaining Gruyere and pop into a preheated 350-degree oven or 20-30 minutes until the top browns.
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18
Serve at once by ladling into individual serving dishes and topping each with a healthy sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.
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19
To Make Garlic-Flavored Croutons: Slice a stale Italian or French bread into 1-inch slices and then into 1-inch cubes.
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20
Brush all sides of bread with olive oil and place in oven to toast until brown.
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21
About halfway through process, remove bread from the oven and rub each piece with a cut garlic clove.
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22
Continue toasting until well browned, but not burned.
