This French Onion Soup (AIP/Paleo) is full of rich, beautiful, authentic flavors! Serve with optional crostini on top – or bread and cheese for non-Paleo peeps.
From the age of nine, I’ve been inexplicably drawn to all things French. And why? Je ne sais pas. 🤷🏼♀️ I love the food, the language and the culture. I started being interested in French cooking in high school when I was learning the language.
This recipe is patterned after one I loved from one of my French cookbooks. Of course, I had to make a few adjustments to make it friendly with my current diet, but I made it as authentic as possible!
Now, any soup is only as good as the base broth. I’ve linked to my recipe for Roasted Beef Bone Broth, because – et je vous promets – you will want the good stuff. Otherwise, you will just have onions in broth. Mais non!
Booze? What???
I feel I must include a caveat whenever I post a recipe that involves alcohol. First and foremost, if you have someone in your house with an alcohol addiction, or you find that you are super sensitive to alcohol, just leave it out! Please be thoughtful to yourself and others as you cook.
“But,” you say, “alcohol is not allowed on the autoimmune protocol!” Correct. However, you can use a gluten-free alcohol in cooking so long as it is cooked off. For further information, please check out this article by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne (aka The Paleo Mom) on the subject.
It is my hope that you will find this soup warming, nourishing, delicious and healing. Happy cooking, everyone!
💗,
Wendi
French Onion Soup (AIP/Paleo)
Course: Soups, MainCuisine: AIP, Paleo, FrenchDifficulty: Medium4
servings7
minutes40
minutesThis French Onion Soup (AIP/Paleo) is full of rich, beautiful, authentic flavors! Serve with optional crostini on top – or bread and cheese for non-Paleo peeps.
Ingredients
3 TBSP 3 extra virgin olive oil
4 – 5 cups sliced onions
1 tsp 1 honey
1/4 cup 1/4 brandy or cognac*
2 TBSP 2 arrowroot starch/flour
4 cups 4 beef bone broth
1/2 – 1 tsp sea salt, depending on taste
1/2 tsp 1/2 black pepper (omit for elimination phase of AIP)
- Optional Crostini PER PERSON:
2 TBSP 2 shredded white sweet potato
1/2 tsp 1/2 arrowroot flour
1/4 tsp 1/4 large flake nutritional yeast
1/8 tsp 1/8 sea salt
1/8 tsp 1/8 garlic powder
extra virgin olive oil for frying, maybe 1 TBSP
Directions
- In a soup pot over medium-low heat, place olive oil, onions and honey. Cook low and slow until onions are brown and caramelized. Be patient with this step. It takes a while to get the onions brown without burning them! (If you are making the crostini topping, you can make them while the onions are browning.)
- Turn the heat to medium-high. Add the brandy or cognac. Cook briskly until all the alcohol has cooked off.
- Sprinkle arrowroot flour over the onions. Whisk around as your gradually add the broth.
- Add salt and pepper (if using). Taste. Adjust if necessary.
- Top with crostini, if desired, and serve!
- Optional Crostini Instructions:
- Spread sweet potato shreds on a small plate. Microwave on high for 30 seconds.
- Mix together the dry ingredients. Toss in shreds, and coat them completely. Form into a flat, loose(ish) patty.
- In a fry pan over medium high heat, place the olive oil. When the oil is hot, fry the patty, turning only once, about 1.5 minutes per side.
Notes
- Please note that the crostini amounts are PER PERSON.
- *If you have someone in your house with an alcohol addiction, or you find that you are super sensitive to alcohol, just leave it out! Please be thoughtful to yourself and others as you cook.
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Hi Wendi, first off, thank you for this WONDERFUL winter recipe! Can you please tell us a brand of brandy or congac that would taste good in this, or which of the two is preferred? I’ve never had either in my life, and I would likely just see if I could get one of those little mini bottles from the store. Also, if anyone knows where to get small single-use portions of wine as well for use in recipes, would you please let me know. I’ve been looking for that for ages and I can never find tiny bottles of wine, and so I just never end up making the recipes that call for it. I just don’t care for the taste of wine outside of cooking.
HI, Lizzie! Sorry for the delay in responding. I’ve been away for Christmas. Thanks for your lovely comments! You can use any brand as long as it is GF. Angie Alt recommends Calvados, I believe. As for the wine, you can find smaller portions in the grocery store. They sell plain old cooking wine near the vinegar in my store in bottles that are approximately the same size as vinegar. Also, if your store sells wine, they often have 4-packs of small bottles that you could keep on hand for cooking. Thanks for writing! Happy New Year! 🎊 🥳🎊