Made by: David

Soupe à l’Oignon Gratinée is the fanciest name for boiled and baked tomato, cheese and onion slop you’ll ever hear. This recipe, from the 1907 edition of Gastronomie Pratique, was given to me (begrudgingly) by a friend and now has become a signature dish I serve on New Year’s Day. The trickiest ingredient to find is tomato purée, which is not simply crushed tomatoes. Do right by me and get the real tomato purée; you won’t regret it.

Recipe

SOUPE À L’OIGNON GRATINÉE

Servings: 6

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 90 minutes

Total time: 2 hours

Ingredients

1 baguette, cut into ½-inch slices (about 25–30 pieces)
9 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup Emmenthal cheese, finely grated
8 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced (about 12 cups)
1 tablespoon kosher salt (for boiling water)
1 cup tomato purée

Directions

Heat oven to 350˚F. Lay the baguette slices on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until golden brown, turning once. Spread butter on each slice (you’ll need about 5 tablespoons), then top with 1/2 cup of cheese.
In a large saucepan, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the onions, season with a bit of salt and sauté, stirring occasionally, until very soft and golden (about 15 minutes).
In a 5-quart casserole dish, arrange a layer of bread slices (about 1/3 of them). Spread 1/3 of the onions on top, followed by 1/3 of the tomato purée. Repeat for two more layers. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. (To avoid boiling over, the dish cannot be more than 2/3 full.)
In a saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add the tablespoon of salt.
Very slowly pour the salted water into the casserole dish, near the edge, so the liquid rises just to the top layer of cheese without covering it. (Depending on the size of dish, you may need more or less water.)
Put the casserole dish on the stove over medium heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Then
transfer to the oven and bake uncovered for 1 hour.
The soup is ready when the surface looks like a crusty, golden cake and the inside is unctuous and so well blended that it’s impossible to discern either cheese or onion. Each person is served some of the baked crust and some of the inside, which should be thick but not completely without liquid.

Beverage pairing

Enjoy this decadent beauty with a solid French or Italian red wine. Or, if you make it on January 1 and don’t feel like a bit of the hair of the dog, skip the booze altogether and pair it with a big glass of water and some Aspirin.

About last night:

This is the perfect hangover food. It’s like cheese pizza in a bowl, and its heavenly aroma expertly covers the stench of regret from the night before.