Category: Cooking, Food & Wine

Made with perfectly caramelized onions, fresh thyme sprigs, crusty baguette slices and two types of melted cheese right on top!

Guys. It is a cold winter in Los Angeles.

We’ve discussed this. Anything below 60 does not bode well with my LA peeps. Except every time I get in the car, it’s actually been 37 degrees F!

Nope. No bueno, guys.

So Butters and I have been holed up at home, making THE CLASSIC French onion soup.

And when I say classic, I mean classic. No fuss, no frills.

It’s just your classic, traditional French onion soup. With the most perfect caramelized onions in a cozy stock with fresh thyme sprigs, finished off with crusty French baguette slices and two cheeses – Swiss and Gruyere – conveniently melted on top.

See, I told you. It’s a classic.

Classic French Onion Soup

Yield: 6 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Made with perfectly caramelized onions, fresh thyme sprigs, crusty baguette slices and two types of melted cheese right on top!

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 3 pounds (about 5 medium) sweet onions, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 6 cups beef stock
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 12 (3/4-inch-thick) French baguette slices
• 1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
• 1 cup shredded Gruyère cheese

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, and cook, stirring often, until deep golden brown and caramelized, about 30-40 minutes.* Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
3. Stir in beef stock, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced, about 15-20 minutes. Remove and discard thyme sprigs and bay leaves.
4. Stir in white wine vinegar; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Preheat oven to broil.
6. Place baguette slices onto a baking sheet. Place into oven and broil until golden brown on both sides, about 1-2 minutes per side; set aside.
7. Divide soup into ramekins or ovenproof bowls. Place onto a baking sheet. Top with baguette slices to cover the surface of the soup completely; sprinkle with cheeses. Place into oven and broil until golden brown and cheeses have melted; about 2 minutes.
8.  Serve immediately.

Notes:

*If the onions begin to burn on the bottom of the pot, reduce heat slightly and stir in 1/4 cup water.

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If there’s one dish I appreciate my mother teaching me to make it’s one of my favorite warm salads; Ugba salad.

Ugba also known as Ukpaka by some Igbo dialects is simply Igbo for African oil bean.

Growing up in Nigeria, my mother had a restaurant where she made Isi ewu and sold drinks. She had a lot of customers and her business grew to be famous until she had to go to catering school. Through this Isi ewu dish, I learnt about ugba and how to make it. I also learnt how to make Nkwobi, which is a dish that can be made with both ugba and chopped cow foot.

Another thing in my childhood I am happy about is my mother opening my pallets to different Nigerian foods. Now, I do the same for my Ajebutters and they eat most Nigerian foods without questioning; including Ugba. At a young age, I started enjoying local Nigerian dishes you wouldn’t really expect a child to understand; talk less of enjoying. Eating ugba at home was one of the ultimate treats mommy could ever give us. There was something about noshing on chewy cow skin and soft/melt in your mouth ugba.

Now to the recipe.

Now I understand that a lot of people share “healthy” dishes after the holidays in order to help with shedding the weight packed on from enjoying holiday foods. But let me tell you something. It’s Winter and we all need a little cushion Besides, why not give a warm and hearty welcome to the New year. You can worry about fit fam when Winter is over

I come from a town in Nigeria where we make our local dishes a little different, but in sharing this recipe, I modified it to fit the general demand of my people. I’ll make note of how you can make it my own way so you may have both.

Oil Bean Salad And Stories From My Mother’s Kitchen

 

Save Print

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

Author: Nma

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• Ugba 4 cups washed and cooked ugba
• cooked and flaked stock fish (1 cup)(optional)
• cooked and chopped cow skin/ponmo(2 cups)
• Habanero(1 large one)
• Ehuru(4-8)
• [url:1]Ngo mix (4tbsps)
• [/url]
• Palm oil (1-2 cups)
• utazi(2tsps)
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. Mix the oil and ngo liquid until it thickens; then pour half of the oil and ngo mix into a separate bowl and set both aside.
2. Toast Ehuru in a hot pan until fragrant; then smoothly crush with the habanero. Mix with the oil; then add the stock fish and cow skin and mix until it’s coated with the oil(make sure the ingredients are not hot so it doesnt break down the already thickened oil). Add the ugba and mix; then add salt in little increments. Set pot on low heat; stirring the salad often to incorporate a little heat. Add the utazi and some of the extra oil(as needed) to the mix. Enjoy with fried/griled peppered fish

Notes

*1) If your ugba is not washed. simply place in a fine mesh sieve and wash thoroughly with warm water. Place in a pot of water and just boil for a few minutes. Drain liquids and let cool

*2) for the Ncha, you may use the usual potash or use baking soda mix with water. I prefer the Ngo(ash) method.
*3) If you don’t want to use Ncha(thickened oil), simply mix everything in oil and season. Garnish with utazi and serve with fish
*4) you may use soft cooked gizzards if you don’t have any cow skin. Season and boil and cut the gizzards into bite sized pieces; then fry/sauté (optional); then add to the ugba mix
!measurements are not completely accurate, please eye ball your measurements for this recipe

3.2.2925

Husband-and-wife team Thomas and Anne Cabrol opened N5 Wine Bar in Toulouse, France, in 2013. The restaurant quickly made a name for itself with a wine list that’s lengthy yet thoughtful, earning Wine Spectator’s Best of Award of Excellence in 2015. The 3,600-selection, moderately priced list includes an impressive 500 wines by the glass. The program represents regions around the world but focuses on France, where picks are particularly strong in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, the Rhône, the Loire and Languedoc-Roussillon. Thomas oversees the beverage program while Anne serves as chef, and their synergy is evident in the wine-friendly menu of small plates. Several pairings are available, from a 3-glass option for $23 to a 5-glass premium option for $114. In addition to meat- and fish-centric plates, N5 Wine Bar has extensive vegetarian options such as tomatoes with lemon-basil sorbet, gnocchi with mushrooms and a pea tart. It’s all presented in a cozy space with plenty of bottles on display.

Daniel’s Broiler Opens in Downtown Seattle

Daniel’s Broiler is now open in the Hyatt Regency in downtown Seattle. It’s the largest location of the Schwartz Brothers steak house, which has two Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence winners in Washington, one in Bellevue and another in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. Both wine lists offer strengths in Washington, California, Oregon and France.

Overseen by Schwartz corporate wine director and general manager Victoria Antilla, the wine list at the new location features 355 selections, including 22 available by the glass and two dozen half-bottles. It shares a focus on domestic and French labels with its two sister outposts, with plenty of big-name labels such as Screaming Eagle, Leonetti and Château Margaux. Antilla hopes to grow and expand the selections over time, which will be driven by guest demand. “I’m really hoping that we do sell a better representation of wines around the world so we can have more of an international balance to the list,” she said. The restaurant serves classic steak-house fare, but like its other locations, there is a “plant-based menu” of meatless options.

New York’s Ai Fiori Names New Wine Director

Courtesy of Ai Fiori

Mariarosa Tartaglione brings Italian know-how to Ai Fiori.

Grand Award winner Ai Fiori in New York has a new wine director, Mariarosa Tartaglione, who came from inside the Altamarea Group family. She joined the Ai Fiori team Jan. 1 after serving as head sommelier at Marea, where she worked with the Best of Award of Excellence–winning program under wine director Francesco Grosso. She replaces Alessandro Piliego.

Born in south-central Italy, Tartaglione brings years of fine-dining experience and “immense” Italian wine knowledge to Ai Fiori, according to corporate beverage director Hristo Zisovski. Zisovski doesn’t foresee any major changes to the list, though he expects Tartaglione to further bolster its Italian selections, which are already the program’s biggest strength.

Wine Dive Brothers Open Vora in Kansas

On Jan. 14, brothers and co-owners Brad and Brent Steven will open Vora in Wichita, Kan. The new concept is located just blocks from their Best of Award of Excellence winner Wine Dive, which has another Best of Award of Excellence–winning outpost in Manhattan, Kan.

Inspired by Brad’s travels, Vora will have more of a European focus than the Wine Dive restaurants. The space is bright and airy, with a large patio and private dining spaces for up to 50 guests. Milan-born chef Giovanni D’Angelo will serve a diverse menu of Italian and French dishes, with some influence from countries like Germany, Spain and Austria. Items will range from wood-fired pizzas to classic steak au poivre with Cognac sauce.

The wine program, overseen by Brad, will be more focused than the eclectic Wine Dive lists, offering about 125 labels with 25 available by the glass. It will highlight Italy and France, especially regions like Piedmont and Burgundy, and feature plenty of refreshing, high-acid wines. “Not so much the over-the-top, ripe, high-alcohol wines,” Brad told Wine Spectator. “We want these wines to really complement the food.”

Now Closed: BLT Prime in New York

BLT Prime’s New York location closed Dec. 21 after 13 years in business. The outpost held a Best of Award of Excellence for its 500-selection wine list with strengths in California, France (especially Burgundy) and Italy. A statement from ESquared Hospitality cites “ongoing construction” nearby and “the prohibitive costs of rising New York City rent” as reasons for the closure.

ESquared Hospitality owns 11 Restaurant Award winners across the country, including the Award of Excellence–winning BLT Prime in Doral, Fla.

Keep up with the latest restaurant news from our award winners: Subscribe to our free Private Guide to Dining newsletter, and follow us on Twitter at WSRestoAwards and on Instagram at wsrestaurantawards.