Vegetarian French Onion Soup

A recipe for Vegetarian French Onion Soup! This light vegetarian broth is filled with caramelized onions, then topped with baguette slices and Gruyère cheese.

We took Evan to Orlando in 2013 for the first time and had such a wonderful trip.

The Be Our Guest restaurant opened a few months before our visit, so we stopped by for lunch during our day at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. It was counter service for lunch at the time, but currently (2024) it is a prix-fixe, 3-course menu for lunch and dinner.

Their French Onion Soup used a vegetable broth as a base instead of the normal beef broth, so it was a bit lighter than traditional version. To finish, It had the melted, bubbly layer of Gruyere cheese on top.

That onion soup was the inspiration for this recipe.

Onion slices are caramelized until deeply golden, then simmered in a vegetable broth with thyme and bay leaves.

Immediately serving, each bowl is topped with a toasted baguette slice and thick layer of Gruyère then broiled until melted and bubbly.

A Few Tips

The vegetable broth is lighter than the traditional beef broth used in French Onion Soup, so make sure to use a good quality store-bought or homemade version to maximize the flavor.

The amount of salt needed will depend on personal taste and the salt content of your broth.

To caramelize the onion slices, cook over low to medium low heat until a deep golden color and softened. Don’t rush the process by turning the heat up. It takes time for the flavor to develop, around 30-45 minutes.

I placed slices of Gruyere cheese over the bread and barely overlapped the bowl so it completely covered the soup when broiled.

Make sure the bread is covered by the cheese to keep it from burning under the broiler.

Looking for more recipes with caramelized onions?

Try my:

• Guinness Onion Soup
• Beer Bratwurst with Caramelized Onions
• Coca de Cebolla y Sobrasada (Onion and Sobrasada Flatbread)

Vegetarian French Onion Soup Recipe

Adapted from Because I Like Chocolate

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5 from 4 votes

Vegetarian French Onion Soup

A recipe for Vegetarian French Onion Soup! A light vegetarian broth is filled with caramelized onions, then topped with baguette slices and Gruyère cheese.

Course Soup

Cuisine French

Keyword cheese, France, French, French onion, gruyere, onion, soup, vegetarian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

0 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4 -5 Servings

Ingredients

• 4 large yellow onions
• 2 tablespoons (30 grams) unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 3 cloves garlic peeled and minced
• 1/2 cup (120 milliliters) white wine
• 6 cups (1.5 liters) vegetable broth
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 1/2 baguette
• 4-5 thick slices Gruyere cheese

Instructions

• Peel the onions, slice them in half, then thinly slice into half moons.
• In a large pot, place the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat.
• Once the butter is melted, add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and deeply golden, around 30-45 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed between medium low and low to keep the onions from burning before they get a chance to caramelize.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Stir in the garlic and cook just until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
• Increase heat to medium-high. Pour in the wine and stir, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
• Once the wine has reduced by half, pour in the vegetable broth followed by the bay leaves and thyme.
• Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, to allow the flavors to blend.
• Remove the bay leaves and thyme stems.
• While the soup is cooking, slice the baguette into 1/2 inch (1.25 centimeter) thick slices and toast until golden. 
• Divide the soup among broiler safe bowls. Top each with a toasted baguette slice. Cover with large slices of Gruyere cheese.
• Place bowls on rimmed baking sheet and broil until the Gruyere is melted and starting to brown.
• Serve immediately with the remaining slices of baguette for dipping.