Vegan French Onion Soup

This one is so easy, and if you serve it to carnivorous guests, they might not even know that it’s vegan. I had it for dinner tonight, and even my four-year-old son had some and loved it — that was quite a surprise!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium onions (pref. yellow, but use whatever you like)
• 1 tbsp. chopped garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp. herbes de Provence
• 1/4 – 1/3 c. soy sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• toasted bread (optional)
• grated vegan cheese (optional)

1. Slice the onions into strips and sauté in about 1 tbsp. olive oil and a couple of pats of margarine (if you don’t like marg, you can leave it out, but it does give the onions a nice, “buttery” flavor). When onions start to soften, add the garlic and bay leaves. Keep an eye on the onions, stirring frequently so that they don’t burn.
2. When onions begin to get a slight golden color, add the herbes de Provence and freshly group pepper (to taste; I use about 1/4 tsp.).
3. When onions are just beginning to brown, add the soy sauce. If you like your soup a little on the salty side, add more soy sauce; if not, you can add less or use low-salt soy sauce. Mix it in and let the onions soak up the soy sauce for a couple of minutes.
4. Add enough water to cover the onions by about 1/4 – 1/2 inch. Then just let it simmer for another 3-5 minutes, and give it a taste. You can adjust the spices and salt here to your liking. The soup should have a rich, hearty flavor without being too salty. Remember, you can always add more salt but you can’t take it away!
5. That’s it! I serve it with toasted whole wheat bread. If you want to get a little more fancy, you can serve the soup a little more traditionally. Take ramekins or small bowls (oven safe) and cut out rounds of bread by overturning the bowls on the bread and pressing down (sort of like a cookie cutter). Toast the bread lightly; add a slice to a bowl of soup and top with shredded vegan cheese. Put the ramekins/bowls on a cookie sheet and stick them in a hot oven (about 350F) until the cheese starts to bubble and brown. Yum!