Belgian Onion Soup

Ingredients

• 750 milliliter ale 
• 4  bay leaves 
• 2 tablespoons butter 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin 
• 6 cloves garlic minced
• 0.5 teaspoon ground pepper white
• 0.5 pound gruyère cheese for garnish
• 5 large onions halved sliced thin
• 4 servings sea salt to taste
• 4  shallots sliced thin
• 4 slices sourdough bread for garnish
• 6 sprigs thyme leaves 
• 4 cups vegetable stock 

Equipment

• bowl
• pot

Directions

1. Heat a wide pot or cast-iron on medium heat.
2. Add the butter and let it blister.
3. Add the onion and cook uncovered.
4. Let them sit for about four minutes and then stir. Repeat until the onions have all begun to brown, at least twenty minutes.
5. Add the olive oil, garlic, and shallots and stir in the same fashion as before, once every five minutes, until the garlic and shallots have caramelized.
6. Add 2 1/2 cups of the beer and crank the heat to just shy of high.
7. Let the beer boil off until there is half as much beer volume as onion volume.
8. Add the stock, bay leaves, thyme leaves, and white pepper. Cook until the liquid has reduced by about two finger widths. Taste the soup and add salt to adjust. Cook for at least an additional twenty minutes before garnishing. In an ideal world, you would let the soup sit a day before serving it. (Just be sure to reheat it.)
9. Take a slice of sourdough and cut it to fit your bowl or cup. Set atop the soup and cover with several slices of Gruyère. Broil until brown and serve hot, topped with extra thyme.
10. BEVERAGEDe Proef Flemish Primitive Wild AleSOUNDTRACKMétal Urbain"Hystérie connective"
11. Reprinted with permission from The Hot Knives Vegetarian Cookbook: Salad Daze by Alex Brown and Evan George, © 2011 Mark Batty Publisher