French Onion Soup

RECIPE

Yield
8 servings

Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
4 cups thinly vertically sliced Walla Walla or other sweet onion
4 cups thinly vertically sliced red onion
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup dry white wine
8 cups less-sodium beef broth
1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
8 (1-ounce) slices French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
8 (1-ounce) slices reduced-fat, reduced-sodium Swiss cheese (such as Alpine Lace)

Preparation
Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions to pan; sauté for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in sugar, pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to medium; cook 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Increase heat to medium-high, and sauté for 5 minutes or until onion is golden brown. Stir in wine, and cook for 1 minute. Add broth and thyme; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours.

Preheat broiler.

Place bread in a single layer on a baking sheet; broil 2 minutes or until toasted, turning after 1 minute.

Place 8 ovenproof bowls on a jelly-roll pan. Ladle 1 cup soup into each bowl. Divide bread evenly among bowls; top each serving with 1 cheese slice. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese begins to brown.

Nutritional Information
Calories:290 (30% from fat)
Fat:9.6g (sat 4.8g,mono 1.9g,poly 0.7g)
Protein:16.8g
Carbohydrate:33.4g
Fiber:3.1g
Cholesterol:20mg
Iron:1.6mg
Sodium:359mg
Calcium:317mg

French cooking@home
by cooking mania

Baked Coconut French Toast with Tropical Fruit Compote

RECIPE

While the fruit compote really complements this dish, you can omit it and pour on maple syrup instead. If you do so, reduce the amount of sugar in the milk mixture by half.

Yield
8 servings (serving size: 2 french toast slices and 1/2 cup compote)

Ingredients
Compote:
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh pineapple
1 cup chopped peeled mango
1 cup chopped peeled papaya
1 cup chopped peeled kiwifruit
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
French toast:
16 (1-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut French bread baguette (about 10 ounces)
Cooking spray
1 1/4 cups light coconut milk
1 1/4 cups egg substitute
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup flaked sweetened coconut

Preparation
To prepare compote, combine first 6 ingredients. Cover and chill for 8 hours or overnight.

To prepare the French toast, arrange bread in a single layer in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Combine light coconut milk, egg substitute, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 tablespoon vanilla, stirring with a whisk, and pour evenly over bread. Turn the bread over to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Remove bread mixture from refrigerator, and uncover. Turn bread slices over, and sprinkle evenly with flaked coconut. Let stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Bake, uncovered, at 350º for 30 minutes or until coconut is golden. Serve warm with fruit compote.

Nutritional Information
Calories:349 (22% from fat)
Fat:8.6g (sat 3.5g,mono 1.5g,poly 2.5g)
Protein:8.6g
Carbohydrate:60.3g
Fiber:4.1g
Cholesterol:0.0mg
Iron:1.8mg
Sodium:309mg
Calcium:44mg

French cooking@home
by cooking mania

Peach French Toast

RECIPE

Yield
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 ripe yellow peaches, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons plus 3/4 cup heavy cream
8 slices white or sourdough bread or brioche
3 large eggs
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Confectioners' sugar

Preparation
In a large skillet, over medium-low heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter until it foams. Add the brown sugar and stir for 30 seconds. Add the peaches, raise heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the cream and simmer for 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Heat oven to 200° F. Place 4 slices of the bread on a cutting board. Divide the peach mixture evenly among the slices, leaving a 1/2-inch border on all sides. Top with another slice of bread and press gently. In a shallow bowl, beat the eggs and cinnamon. Working in batches, soak the sandwiches in the egg mixture for 2 minutes per side. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry 2 sandwiches until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining butter and sandwiches. Beat the remaining cream until soft peaks form. Halve each sandwich on the diagonal, sprinkle with the confectioners' sugar, and serve with the whipped cream.

Tip: If you're using day-old bread to make the French toast, trim the crusts, which may have become tough.

Nutritional Information
Calories:504.5 (64% from fat)
Fat:36.12g (sat 20.71g)
Protein:10.17mg
Carbohydrate:36.2g
Fiber:1.97g
Cholesterol:260.05mg
Iron:2.81mg
Sodium:416.11mg
Calcium:140.25mg

French cooking@home
by cooking lover

French Bread Pizza with Sausage, Clams, and Mushrooms

Yield
6 servings (serving size: 1 piece).

Ingredients
1 (4-ounce) link sweet Italian sausage
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 (6 1/2-ounce) can chopped clams, undrained
3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1 (16-ounce) loaf French bread, cut in half horizontally
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°.

Remove casing from sausage. Cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Add flour, and cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the mushrooms, milk, oregano, pepper, and clams; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat. Stir in 1/2 cup cheese.

Place bread halves on a baking sheet; spread clam mixture evenly over cut sides of bread. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese and parsley. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Cut each half into 3 pieces.

Nutritional Information
Calories:363 (28% from fat)
Fat:11.3g (sat 4.7g,mono 4.4g,poly 1.3g)
Protein:19.3g
Carbohydrate:44.8g
Fiber:2.7g
Cholesterol:35mg
Iron:4mg
Sodium:1mg
Calcium:276mg

French cooking@home
by cooking mania