Souper Onion Bowl

Preheat oven to 400°F. Pour the warm water over the yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachmen. Whisk together and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Cover the bowl with a towel. The mixture should be foamy and bubbly after 5 minutes. With the stand mixer running on low speed, add the sugar, salt, olive oil, 4 cups of flour and 2 tablespoons of the fresh thyme. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, then add the remaining 2 cups of flour. Beat on low speed for 5-6 minutes. The dough should be thick, yet soft and not sticky. If it’s too sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it easily pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball. Then place into a large greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about 90 minutes. Once doubled in size, punch down the dough to release any air bubbles. Remove dough from the bowl and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 2 equally-sized pieces and roll out into a circle about 9 inches in diameter.

Add 2 yellow onions and 2 red onions to the center of each dough circle. Fold the edges up and over the onions to fully cover. Turn the stuffed dough over, seam side down, onto the baking sheet. Pinch a piece of dough on two opposite sides of each onion-stuffed dough and stuff with a ball of aluminum foil to form a handle shape. Combine the egg and 1 tablespoon of water together. Brush the dough with the egg wash, then add the cheddar strips onto the dough in a pattern of your liking. Bake for about 35-45 minutes or until the bread is golden and firm.

Heat the frying oil to 375 degrees°F. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the 7 oz. of flour, baking powder, salt, paprika, and beer until the mixture is smooth. Slice the remaining 2 red onions with the apple slicer, leaving about 1/2-3/4 of an inch uncut at the bottom. Lower a sliced onion into the batter with the help of your tongs to fully coat the onion (make sure to get batter in between the cut parts). Let the excess batter drip off, then lower the battered onion into the frying oil with the pasta skimmer. Fry until crisp and golden, about 3-5 minutes. Repeat with the remaining onion. You may keep the onions warm in the oven as you complete the next steps.

Remove the bread from the oven and let them cool slightly. Cut a round off the top of each bread bowl with your bread knife and set aside. Remove the onions from the center of the bread and slice them into thin half-moons. Add the butter to a medium-large pot. When melted, add the sliced onions and the thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the wine and let it simmer until almost completely evaporated. Remove the thyme sprigs and add 1/4 cup of flour and minced garlic, stirring constantly. Cook for about one minute, then add the beef or vegetable broth. Bring to a simmer and let the soup slightly thicken.

Add 1/4 of the grated Gruyere to the bottom of each bread bowl, then add half of the soup to each bowl. Top with the remaining grated cheese. Return the bowls to the oven and bake until the cheese is bubbly and golden. Remove from the oven and remove the aluminum foil from the handles. Garnish with parsley, then add the cut-off top of the bread bowls to the top of each. Place a fried onion on top. Enjoy!