Soup Sunday

"This is a bag filled with dreams & recipes for soup & he's deciding right now which he's really hungry for. "
StoryPeople

Cider Onion Soup
Bread Rounds:
1 French Baguette, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds

Soup:
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
5 cups sliced yellow onion
4 cups hard cider (regular cider can also be used)
4 cups low-salt beef or chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups sliced firm, smooth cheese, such as swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
To make bread rounds, brush both sides of bread slices with butter. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake about 25 minutes, or until crisp and golden.

To make soup, melt butter in a soup pot over low heat . Add onion. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 25 minutes, or until soft and just starting to color.

Increase heat to medium; cook, uncovered, for another 25 minutes, or until onion is deep golden brown and almost caramelized.
Add cider and broth; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes.

To serve, bring soup to a boil. Preheat broiler.

Ladle soup over breads and place 3 bread rounds and sliced cheese over soup. Broil about 2 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and just starting to brown. Serve hot.