French Onion soup?

I have not eaten red meat or pork in a long time. I am always looking for ways to enjoy the dishes that I love while staying away from those 4 legged animals. Traditional French Onion soup uses beef broth but i have found that you can use chicken broth as well. I have even done this recipe with vegetable broth also and it comes out really well.










general cooking time: 3-4 hours



Ingredients:
3 large red Onions
1 tbs of butter
48 oz low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable broth)
1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 cup of port wine
salt and pepper to taste

Loaf of french baguette
Gruyere Cheese

So I am the type of person who likes to tweak and change recipes as much as possible. I do a lot of cooking by looks and feeling. This recipe does take a long time but you can prep a lot ahead of time and do this on the fly.



First thing that you need to do is caramelize the onions. This will take quite a while but if you do this while at home one day the onions will keep for a while. Slice the onions and add to pot with the pad of butter. i add butter so that it starts the sweating process of the onions. Set stove to low heat and let reduce. I use a cast iron pot and have found that his works amazing well for caramelizing onions. I would not recommend trying to cut time by raising the heat because then the onions start to scorch. You want the onions to sweat and cook in their own sugars. I would cook the first hour or so with the lid on so help the onions release the moisture and then toward the end uncover to help brown. This took me about 3 hours to complete. The photo has bout 5-6 large onions because i wanted to keep caramelized onions on hand. The onions will turn a light brown color. you will be able to take a taste of the onions and they will be sweet without any bitterness.
after you have caramelized the onions add the stock, wine and vinegar. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Keep uncovered and reduce to about half the size, add salt and pepper to taste. I use a reduced sodium stock because I am not a salt lover. Just remember that you will be adding cheese and a toasted baguette so you will probably be better off not to over salt the stock.

After you are content with the strength of the flavors you can either pack it up for later or move on to the next steps.







Toast some breads. I used a baguette, but I have also used rye bread and sourdough. It is a person taste but i have been happy with all. The key is to make sure that it is dry so that it can soak up the loveliness that is the soup. I sometimes toast ahead of time and make sure that they are fully dry before using with the soup. Cover with they cheese that you selected. and then broil until the cheese is gooey and slightly browned. I find that by making this in larger ramekins the portions are perfect.

This is also a dish where you can store the soup toast the bread ahead of time and whip together at the last second for french onion soup.

Chrysler building

I went to New York for the first time ever with my sister for my birthday. Its a little shameful that it took me 31 years to make it to the city but I finally did. I was amazed by the shear size of the city. All those years studying architecture and seeing the city in pictures does not come close to the amazing feeling of the city. We rode in on the bus early ( a little too early) on sat morning and spent the day in Manhattan. The city overwhelmed me so much that it did not even bother me that the first two days we spent most of our time shopping. If you knew me you would understand that shopping is not high on my list of priorities. Typically I would rather bamboo shoots up the nails than spend the day shopping, let alone two. Needless to say that I was so enamored by the city and its details that while my sister explored the racks for sales and merchandise I became aloof and focused on the built environment. If shopping was like that all the time, I could probably be a convert. Of course i would not buy much, but I would be more apt to be going around with people who would. Needless to say that my shins were not really happy with me because I kept hitting things because my focus was up in the sky and not where i was walking. The third day I dragged my sister to do touristy things, one of which just went beyond any expectation that I could of put with it. The Chrysler building. We walked down 5Th ave and as we turned the corner to head to Grand Central Station there it was, poking its majestic metallic crown out through the void that was made by the street. I was floored by its grace and style. I have always read about the Chrysler building and have always admired it, but being up close and personal its skyrocketed up in my top ten list, very close to the top. The Chrysler building is considered Art Deco style. It is a great interpretation of the machine age of the 20's. This building not only celebrates the automobile but the worker that built it. The Building is dressed with designs of the Chrysler products through out the exterior. The corners of the 61st floor have replicas of the 1929 Chrysler eagle hood ornaments and on the 31st floor are replicas of the 1929 Chrysler radiator caps. The craft is not only celebrated on the exterior but in its interior by a wonderful mural depicting the worker who builds the American car. Each person that is placed in the mural is a wonderful characterization of the strength and the determination of the American car builder. Coming from a steelworkers family this building just moved me beyond thought. I kind of felt bad as I got lost in my thoughts loosing track of time while my sister enjoyed the space but I could tell that she was ready to move on. I will defiantly be going back. The building warrants more time and respect.

A new addition to the chicago skyline take 2

The other weekend I went to go and visit the folks. They are in Indiana and the last day of my quick weekend my parents had tickets to see the Cubs. Looking back I wish I had the foresight to make it to the game myself. I sure do miss Wrigley field. So I went to Chicago with my parents and we parted ways at Wrigley field. Man was that hard, being at the field and not going in to see the game. I had about 5 hours before my flight so I had some time to waste. I went down town and walked around for a while. This gave me a chance to take a closer look at Aqua. It is an interesting building. Its simple shape is fits well into the landscape of the Mies influenced Chicago building type. It plays with the simple rectangular shape with the undulating balconies which are extensions of the floor assembly. I am still interested in this building and will be following it continued construction. I am still very interested on how the balconies will be detailed and finished. With no railings on it now you can see the connection of the glass structure to the modern architecture of Chicago. The building has even made it into the Wendell boat tour commentary. Its making waves in the Chicago skyline, check it out for yourself.

Woe that was Filenes

I currently work in downtown Boston and all i have to say is that there is alot of building going on in this town. Boston is taking on the republican party's ideals when it comes to the dreaded "R" word. I am talking about the other dreaded "R" word not Replublican. (Can't wait to get the flack from my republican friends) You know that horrible word that scares people into thinking that there is going to be an apocalypse and that we are all going to be on the streets begging for money. Don't want to say it because i don't want to jinx it. While the country has felt the ill effects of the presidential spending policies, Boston has just kept on building. I think that it is great. The type of building that is going on in down town is alot of residential high rises. It is trying to get people to move back into the cities and depend less on their cars on a daily basis. Unfortunately for Boston it is going to be so expensive it is going to be difficult for someone who makes a reasonable living to afford them, but we will have to come to that when they are done. I am going to start following the project at Downtown Crossing. For many of us who have been in Boston for a while the existing Filenes block is a mix of different designs and continuity was not the main focus. That's downtown Boston though. Build where you can, because there is not much space. Well the Filenes block is going to be a new glimmering high rise of commercial, office and residential spaces when finally complete. They are hacking out the non historically significant areas and filling in with glass and steel. It should be interesting. To be honest with you, Downtown Crossing needed a face lift and to reinvigorate the surroundings. If I would be able to afford it I would live in this area in a hart beat. Take a look at the demolition process in action. I have to say that seeing the large excavator with the pincher attachment makes me revert to 10. All I can think is Crush, Boom, Cool!!!!!!!!!