3 Spanish onions

6 cups high quality beef stock (or amped up store bought stock, see below)

3 tbsp Olive Oil

2 tbsp flour

1 cup dry sherry

Soy sauce (optional)

Fish sauce (optional)

Day old French baguette (for topping)

Kosher Salt

Black Pepper

Gruyere cheese, shredded (for topping)

For the Amped Up Store Bought Stock

1 bunch parsley

Sliced carrots

Thyme sprigs

3 garlic cloves, halved

2 bay leaves

Sprinkle of peppercorns

2 cloves (optional)

Parmesan cheese rind

Start by preparing your onions. Peel them and then cut in half from pole to pole - through the root and stem. Remove the tough root part by cutting it away with your knife. Then thinly slice them pole to pole - like cutting with the grain of the onion. This gives the slices more structural integrity so that they stand up to the slow cooking method.

Repeat this process with the rest of the onions.

Next prepare your stock. Ideally you would use homemade beef stock, but you can also “soup” up a store bought version. To do that, add your beef broth to a stock pot and bring to a simmer. Add aromatics like parsley, sliced carrots, thyme sprigs, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves, and parmesan rind. Let it simmer for 1 hour.

Slowly caramelize the onions over medium heat. Keep them moving constantly, and scrape down the sides of the pot.

The onions are done when they are soft, jammy, and caramelized with a lot of fond on the bottom of the pot.

Add flour to the onions and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Optional: add umami boosters. I like to add a splash of fish sauce and soy sauce to richen the flavors.

Slice a clove of garlic in half and rub down each piece of bread with the garlic.

Garnish with chives and serve and enjoy!