Thursday, September 27, 2007

A Woman's Tears and French Onion Soup

My dear MIL send me this today, I thought I'd post it here. And it just so happened that I had onions in mind too...
A little boy asked his mother, 'Why are you crying?' 'Because I'm a woman,' she told him.

'I don't understand,' he said. His Mom just hugged him and said, 'And you never will.'

Later the little boy asked his father, 'Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?'

'All women cry for no reason,' was all his dad could say.

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.

Finally he put in a call to God. When God got on the phone, he asked, 'God, why do women cry so easily?'

God said:

'When I made the woman she had to be special.

I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world,

yet gentle enough to give comfort

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children.

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue with out complaining.

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her very badly.

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.

And finally, I gave her a tear to shed. This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed.'

'You see my son,' said God, 'the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides.


After reading the above, I thought it was appropriate to post it with my newly found recipe of vegetarian french onion soup.

Why?

Because I had stream of tears while slicing all those onions. Should have done the toast trick, or wore these goggles from Amazon.com
Does anyone know if these work? Maybe I should have worn my swimming goggles to block off the onion gas from my tear buds.

Everyone I know has her/his version of french onion soup. This one is from Mollie Katzen of Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, New York, and I made this for a vegetarian friend who dropped by for a quick bite earlier.
Vegetarian Onion Soup
2 tbs butter
4 large yellow onions, thinly sliced1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
fresh thyme from 3 sprigs of thyme
4 cups water
2 tbs soy sauce
2 to 3 tbs dry white wine
white pepper

Toppings
thin slices of swiss cheese (used Gruyere)
think slices of french bread or baguette

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan. Add onions and salt, and cook over med heat for about 10 mins, stirring occasionally.

Add mustard and fresh thyme. Stire and cover. Turn the heat to low and simmer for about 35-45 mins. The onions will be exquisitely soft and simmer in their own liquid. And the house smelled lovely.

Add water, soy sauce, wine, and white pepper. Simmer for 10-15 mins more. Taste and adjust seasonings. Scoop into oven-proof bowls, top with bread and cheese, and put under the broiler to brown the cheese. Be careful handling as these bowls are hot.Note: I was intrigued with this recipe when I got hold of it, and it turn out pretty good. I still prefer Julia Child's recipe with lots more butter, but this is a nice and easy one for having vegetarian friends over and perfect for a cold rainy day.

9 comments:

Beau Lotus 涟 said...

Mmmm, I love French Onion Soup! And my MIL has a recipe from where she came from which called for cheese to drown in the soup! Love it love it love it!

Big Boys Oven said...

What a lovely and looks delicious onion soup.... is it italian onion soup?

Padma said...

I would love to have it, Chill air already started here in NJ. Wondering how Non-vegetarian version will look like :O

East Meets West Kitchen said...

Hi Beau Lotus,
Ooo! I've love the sound of that, and I love onion soup too!

Hi Big Boys Oven,
Thanks. It's french, but there are many versions. :)

Hi Padma,
Simply use chicken or beef broth in place of water for the non-vegetarian version. Some recipes also call for bay leaf.

Anonymous said...

I don't like raw onions, and prefer onion soup like this. Onions that have been cooked till dead-soft.

East Meets West Kitchen said...

Hi Tigerfish,
Yes, the soft cooked onions and the onion flavored broth is so tasty!

daphne said...

I love that! It made me tear.

And the cheesy topping on onion soup is a great idea. I haven't thought of that. Usually I melt cheese on toast. Will definitely try it. Thanks!

Cris said...

I love french onion soup, but I've never tried any recipes...

East Meets West Kitchen said...

Hi Daphne,
Glad you liked it!
Ya, broiling the cheese in the oven makes it all gooey and yummy!

Hi Cris,
It's soup weather here now, and onion soup is very easy to make.