The only thing better than a steaming bowl of homemade soup is your favorite piping hot stew served in a bowl made of bread. A hearty round, such as sourdough or French country bread, is hollowed out to create a natural vessel for the soup. The bread slowly soaks up the flavorful broth, enhancing the taste and texture of each bite. Any remaining bread can be torn and used to sop up leftover bits or toasted and used as croutons atop a final bowl.
We chose traditional soups with mass appeal to ladle into our bread bowls. Decadent broccoli cheese is enriched with heavy whipping cream and quality cheeses. Smoked gouda amplifies the flavor profile, but it can easily be swapped for cheddar jack or gruyere to make a milder bend. Home chefs can play with the ratio of cream to chicken broth to get the consistency just right for their taste.
The savory, sweet broth of French onion soup perfectly complements a crusty bread bowl. To add a punch of extra flavor, we prefer the rosemary, parmesan and garlic sourdough from local artisan baker Twining Tree Farm. This simple recipe with few ingredients benefits from a robust bone broth or high-quality beef stock. One can easily substitute a pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc for the sherry.
Comforting, homemade soup in a rustic boule is the ideal amenity on a chilly February day. Try this for a satisfying combination that will warm your heart and tummy this season.
Broccoli Cheese Soup
Serves: 6 | Prep time: 10 minutes | Cook time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 3 heads broccoli
- 8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
- 7 oz smoked cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 sourdough boule, top removed and inside hollowed out
Directions:
Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook an additional minute before sprinkling in the flour. Whisk the mixture continuously for 2 minutes until flour turns a golden color.
Stir in the milk, heavy whipping cream and chicken broth. Season the mixture with salt, cayenne and nutmeg. Add in the broccoli and cover the pot with a lid.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, until broccoli is fork-tender. Gradually add the cheeses in three phases, stirring after each addition.
Serve the soup in a hollowed-out sourdough boule.
French Onion Soup
Serves: 6 | Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 60 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup salted butter
- 4 sweet onions, thinly sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup sherry
- 2 tbsp fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 8 cups beef broth
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 sourdough boule, top removed and hollowed out
- 6 oz Swiss cheese, shredded
Directions:
Heat the butter and onions in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Cook onions for about 30 minutes, stirring often, until onions are softened and browned. Add the garlic and cook an additional minute.
Pour in the sherry and scrape the bottom to free up any caramelized onion bits that may have stuck to the pot. Add in thyme, bay leaves, broth, salt and pepper.
Cover pot and simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Preheat oven to low broil.
To serve, ladle the delicious, homemade soup into the hollowed-out bread bowl. Top with Swiss and place on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Watch closely and remove as soon as the bread starts to brown and the cheese is melted and begins to bubble.