When I was first learning to cook, Swiss Cheese and Onion Soup is one of the first dishes I made that really made me feel proud of myself. I’ve never had a soup like it, but it’s made from flavors that everybody knows and loves. That makes it just unusual enough – yet familiar enough – to be spectacularly suitable for guests. It has been the second course of many memorable dinner parties I’ve hosted.
Ingredients
- For the Croutons
4 Tbs butter
½ tsp garlic powder
1 large loaf of French or Italian bread, cubed (6 cups of cubes)
- For the Soup
2 Tbs butter
2 medium white onions, peeled, quartered, and thinly sliced
1 medium clove of garlic, minced
1½ tsp salt
1 Tbs dry mustard
3 Tbs flour
2 Tbs dry sherry or tawny port
2 cups water
2 tsp cream-style horseradish
1½ cups warmed milk
½ lb. Swiss cheese, grated (about 1½ cups)
White pepper, to taste
Paprika, for serving
Directions
- For the Croutons
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once it’s melted, add garlic. Stir briefly, then add bread. Toss casually but often, and cook until the pan begins to smoke, 7 minutes. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until golden and crunchy, about 20 minutes, tossing occasionally.
- For the Soup
- Melt the butter over a medium flame in a medium or large soup pot. Add onions, garlic, salt, and mustard, and cook until the onions are very soft, 10 minutes.
- Gradually sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly, then add the sherry and mix well. Add water and horseradish. Stir and cook until the mixture thickens and comes to a sustained, low boil, 5 minutes.
- Add milk. Off heat. Add cheese. Stir until smooth.
- Add pepper, to taste. Adjust other seasonings. Serve with croutons and a light dusting of paprika.
Notes
- I strongly recommend that you grate your own cheese for this soup. A food processor will make it an easy job of it.
The Backstory
Although now, this soup seems like something I could toss off after work and hardly notice that I’d done it, I remember that when I was first learning to cook, making this soup seemed to me like a big deal. You know what? It is a bit deal! It’s a fantastic soup! It does make me wonder, though, about the inherent relativity of terms like “easy.” Should I bother using terms like that, knowing that they might have clashingly opposed meanings to people on different locations along the “I can cook” spectrum? On the other hand, “easy” is an indispensable keyword.
My photos of this soup are thoroughly lacking in excitement. It’s just a plain white soup, in a plain white bowl, and I’m not ambitious enough to do much about it. But you have to trust me: what seems boring in these images is, when a steaming hot bowl is sitting in front of you, genius in that it looks so simple, but quickly reveals itself to be anything but. It has the umami power of a French onion soup, not just in the onion, but in the enjoyable chewiness of the croutons. But where the former is so dominated by the flavor of onion, this soup shines its light on the tangy, nutty flavor of Swiss cheese. The horseradish and mustard don’t assert themselves, but come across instead as intrigue.
[1] Katzen, Mollie. 1992. “Homemade Croutons.” The Moosewood Cookbook (Ten Speed Press) 20.
[2] Katzen, Mollie. 1992. “Swiss Cheese and Onion Soup.” The Moosewood Cookbook (Ten Speed Press) 21.
Swiss Cheese and Onion Soup with Homemade Croutons
Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man!, unless otherwise indicated. Thank you, Kesor and Proper Circle. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything.
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There’s a lot of food that just doesn’t photograph well, unfortunately. But any good and experienced cook can look at the ingredient list and know how delicious a recipe will turn out! This sounds great. I loved Mollie Katzen from my hippy days!
Right on!
That looks like a really soothing and warming soup for the season!
angiesrecipes recently posted…Egg White Chocolate Bundt Cake
Thanks, Angie!
This sounds delicious. I had all the Moosewood cookbooks and never even noticed this!
anne recently posted…Leftovers Again
Oh! You’re going to love it!
Beautifully described by you, this sounds and looks like an amazing soup. I always want to add some green herbs or something to jazz things up photogenically, but really if it tastes great, that’s all that matters. I’ll try this on a cooler and wet day, here in the tropics. Thanks so much, Pauline.
Pauline McNee recently posted…Tropical Sweet and Sour Pork
You’re welcome, and thanks!
Ahh. This soup sounds delicious. Looks delicious too, despite the white bowl.
Thanks!
I really like French onion soup, but sometimes it seems a little thin to me, even when I have a good, homemade stock. This sounds very good, and I’m eager to try it, especially since we’re in ‘soup season’ here on the Texas coast.
I’ve never mentioned how much I enjoy your ‘back stories.’ It’s one thing to find an appealing recipe here, but it’s even better to learn something new with each post: an ingredient, a technique, or whatever. I may not make every recipe, but I never miss a post.
shoreacres recently posted…Fear, or Flying?
Thank you so much! That really means a lot to me!
Man oh Man! This soup and the poptarts that were on the page have me drooling. Remember when cookbooks didn’t have photos? I think I saved a lot of calories that way. But truthfully, photo or not, Swiss cheese and onions is enought to get me drooling!
Abbe@This is How I Cook recently posted…Tom Ka Soup Recipe
Thanks, Abbe!
Jeff a great recipe and one I shall try soon, although we don’t see white onions here so it’ll be brown or maybe red.
You also bring up two good points. I couldn’t agree more regarding the fact that some foods are not photogenic, but can taste fantastic. At the end of the day, I like the food images of a recipe to look like my dish would should I cook it. Second, “easy”, IMHO is the most misused tag in food blogging. How can a recipe be easy when it has tons of ingredients and steps to prepare. Thanks, as always for sharing…
Ron recently posted…A Master Weaver and a Swedish pancake pie…
I know, right? It really got me thinking about what “easy” means. Does that means that it’s quick? Simple? Or that it doesn’t rely on special skills or inside knowledge? I think that in the end, you have to ask, “Easy for whom?”
This soup sounds fantastic, Jeff! And the horseradish in here is a unique twist – I like it! You make a good point about easy, though. That’s interesting food for thought. Nevertheless, it’s colder than the cold outside right now, and I could definitely go for a bowl of this soup!!
David @ Spiced recently posted…Surf and Turf Nachos
No kidding! And thanks!
I can’t wait to try this soup. It sounds amazing.
Thanks!
Sure looks like a satisfying soup! And I do understand some of the tastiest food isn’t especially photogenic.
Thanks, David!
Nice recipe! The horseradish is a pleasant surprise. It’s going to snow here this weekend, so soup time!
John / Kitchen Riffs recently posted…Cream of Celeriac and Celery Soup
🙂
You know that we are all about soup during the cold winter days. This is a nice riff on traditional onion soup which takes more than a beat to make. The Hungarians have milk-based soups too but I’ve never made them, this recipe looks like a lovely addition to our winter soup repertoire.
Eva Taylor recently posted…Quick Phyllo Pastry
It’s lovely. Give it a try!
Jeff, I love onion soup and this looks delicious !! Happy new Year!
Gloria Roa Baker recently posted…Chocolate,honey and cherry parfait (Parfait de chocolate miel y cerezas)
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I had the Moosebook cookbook and used it often but I don’t remember this recipe. Thanks for bringing back good memories.
Isn’t it a great book?
Jeff, I must disagree: your photos here are stunning! The paprika sprinkle is gorgeous, and you captured the crouton texture beautifully. I love that this soup has mustard and horseradish, that sounds so unique and delicious. And again, that paprika sprinkling! What a great finishing flavor.
Shannon recently posted…Kale Salad with Creamy Cilantro Dressing
Thank you Shannon!
it’s hard to get good soup photos i reckon especially with these colours 🙂 But this sounds tasty!
Thank you!
Onion soup is something I have never made on my own. My husband and I were contemplating buying a container of it at Costco earlier this week, but ultimately passed on the purchase because I figured I could try making it myself at some point. Your recipe feel a little serendipitous. I’m going to pin it and get the ingredients ordered for curbside pick up to try this weekend. Thanks!
Theresa recently posted…Ultimate Hot Chocolate
It’s a real winner. I hope you enjoy it. It seems perfect for this cold weather we’ve been having where I live.
I certainly do love the looks of this soup. Was pleasantly surprised to see the horseradish. I love horseradish but use is rarely. What a great excuse to pull out the jar in the fridge. Thanks!
mjskitchen recently posted…Green Chile, Leek and Potato Soup
Yes, and it’s so nice in this soup, you’ll be glad you had it on-hand!
I can safely say this soup is beautiful but “easy” as you point out is a loaded phrase. It can sound arrogant to someone who is new to the kitchen. I often choose the word “simple” as it has a two-pronged meaning. But now I sound arrogant! GREG
I know what you mean. It’s contextual. So if someone says “here’s an easy croquembouche recipe,” you have to wonder…
I think you took great photos — especially because they’re luring me in and making me hungry! 🙂 ~Valentina
Well then I’ll call that a success! Wish I could make you a bowl!
Fantastic soup for this freezing cold here in dc.
Olga.
Here in Chicago, too!
No worries about the picture, the flavours are tempting enough to just lift that bowl off the screen and slurp it away 😛
EASYFOODSMITH recently posted…PANJIRI – पंजीरी (Winter Super food)
Thank you!
This sounds delicious, Jeff! And you’re right, some of the plainest looking monochrome foods can be fantastic eating. I call it the food blogger’s dilemma… trying to convey a taste sensation through a visual medium isn’t easy.
Right? Thanks, Frank!
This warm Swiss cheese and onion soup realy goes well with the winter cold days. Homemade croutons looks great, perfect for the soup. I loved this combination.
Thank you! It’s a wonderful winter soup.
I love both onion soup and Swiss cheese, so this sounds like a great soup to me!
Thanks, Nancy!
I way behind, Jeff, and I’m sorry. It’s a great story, and a great recipe… And I had no idea that it was in the Moosewood Cookbook! I was a big devotee of the Moosewood and Molly was an alumna of my college. How on earth did I miss this recipe? Putting this on the menu for next week!
It’s delicious – I hope you enjoy it.