French 2-4-1: Onion Soup and Fondue

French Onion Soup

Ingredients:
4 tbsp butter (I use five because I use water instead of broth)
1 tsp salt
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced (I like medium white onions and then throwing in a few shallots)
1 (48 fluid ounce) can chicken broth
1 (14 ounce) can beef broth (I use water because I think the onions give water enough flavor and the beef brother makes the soup too salty, BUT this is the classic recipe)
1/2 cup red wine (I use white but only because red gives me headaches from time to time)
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce (I don't add this but it's a personal preference)
2 sprigs fresh parsley
1 sprig fresh thyme leaves (I add rosemary too)
1 bay leaf
4 thick slices French bread/baguette
8 slices Gruyere or Swiss cheese slices, room temperature (I use emmental, not swiss: which the germans call Emmenthaler.)
1/2 cup shredded Asiago or mozzarella cheese, room temperature (I use mozzarella because I can get it more easily.)
4 pinches paprika
(Salt and pepper to taste...)

Directions:
1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in salt, and chopped red and sweet onions. Cook 35 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are caramelized and almost syrupy. delicious.
2. Mix chicken broth, beef broth (water), wine and Worcestershire sauce (not this unless you want to make traditional soup) into pot. Bundle the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf with twine and place in pot. Simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard the herbs. Reduce the heat to low, mix in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep over low heat to stay hot while you prepare the bread.
3. Preheat oven broiler (I do this just in my oven... I'm not fancy enough to have a broiler). Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 3 minutes, turning once, until well toasted on both sides. Remove from heat; do not turn off broiler.
4. Arrange 4 large oven safe bowls or crocks on a rimmed baking sheet (for spill-over) because of the melting cheese...). Fill each bowl 2/3 full with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 slice toasted bread, 2 slice Gruyere cheese and 1/4 of the Asiago or mozzarella cheese (and some emmental which gives it a nice sharp taste). Sprinkle a little bit of paprika over the top of each one.
5. Broil 5 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. As it softens, the cheese will cascade over the sides of the crock and form a beautifully melted crusty seal. Serve immediately!

Fondue with the left overs:
With left over cheese: you can mix the Gruyere, emmental and asiago and make a really nice fondue by melting equal parts of cheese, wine and a small bit of Kir and a bay leaf or rosemary, and salt and pepper. Some people make it fancy, but not me because I am poor. you can use the left over bread too, but you should leave it on the counter overnight and then cut it into bite size pieces.

AMENDMENT: I really love this recipe because its a two for one and the left over cheese and bread don't go to waste. I got both of these recipes while in France, so enjoy and bon apetit!