Vegan(and Vegetarian) French Onion Soup in a Home made Bread Bowl

I was always fascinated by the soups and stews served in the adorable bread bowls.Looks challenging but If you can bake a bread then these are unbelivebly simple to make.Vegan French onion soup is the simplest soup to serve in these bowls.It so happened I had to empty the pantry of onions and flour the day before moving to Columbus,the soup in bread bowl seemed perfect to use them up.With no cheese in the fridge and no time for shopping for any, I made it all vegan,Mr.health nut couldn't be more happy(he is always grateful to skip cheese).


Recipe :Vegan French Onion Soup
Adapted from Suite101.com.The original recipe uses tahini and miso(soy paste) as a substitute for cheese.Again I didn't have those in stock and are missing in my recipe.
Ingredients
2 large or 4 medium onions,finely chopped
4 cups of vegetable stock\broth
2 cloves garlic,minced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper,freshly ground
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon cornstarch or all purpose flour
Method
Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute until lightly brown.add the garlic and saute another minute or two.Cover and cook for 25-30 minutes on medium-low heat until onions are tender,stir occasionally.Add the sauce ,pepper and vegetable broth,bring to a slow boil.
Mix the cornstarch in tablespoon of water and add to the boiling onion mixture,keep stirring to prevent lumps.simmer for about 3-4 minutes.Serve in soup bowls with crusty bread or make you own bread bowl as follows.

Vegetarian Variation :
Sprinkle some Swiss cheese or Gruyere over the soup bowls and melt under the broiler for 2-3 minutes and serve.

Recipe : Bread Bowl
One can skip the Bake again part, I baked the second time for a more crusty texture to the bowls.Method adapted from ehow.
Makes 2 medium bread bowls
Ingredients
1 cup 100% whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 pack(1 1/2 teaspoon) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cup warm water,little more if needed

Method
Prepare the dough
Dissolve the yeast in warm water, stir in the sugar and allow the yeast to get frothy, about 10 minutes.In a large bowl combine the flours, salt and oil. Add the yeast mixture and knead until well combined and smooth.Apply some more oil on the sides of the bowl cover and allow to rise until double it size about 2-3 hours.
Bake
Preheat oven to 400F.
Punch down the air from the dough.Knead for a minute.Then divide the dough in to 2 equal portions.Shape in to a round shape about 5 centimeters in diameter and place on a greased baking sheet,cover with a kitchen towel and proof for another hour by allowing to rise one last time before baking.
Vegans can skip this
brush the dough with a table spoon of egg wash(mixture of egg and water) evenly all over.

Place in the middle rack of the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until the crust is golden brown and sounds hallow when tapped.Cool for at least 15-20 before slicing off the top of each of the bread roll with a serrated knife.


Bake again

After cutting off the top,scoop out the some of the insides of the bread,carefully not to remove too much or the bread bowl might leak.These can be used as a dip in the soup.
Bake again at 350F for 5-6 minutes until the bread bowl is slightly toasted.Now transfer them on to serving plate.Ladle the warm onion soup until 3/4th full,garnish with herbs or if topping with cheese melt under the broiler for 3-4 minutes and serve.


The pictures were taken in a jiffy with all the moving chaos at home,almost thought of skipping the photo session and get straight to eating them.But since this is so apt for The Click Click - Allium,glad I could spare few minutes.
My first attempt at bread bowls these are also my entry for BBD #23:Something you have never made before and Susan's Yeast Spotting,hosted this week by Macheesmo.