The Sweet Nectar of Onions

I was recently having a debate with a friend about which onions were the sweetest. We talked about the Vidalia and the Walla Walla, but I told him hands-down the sweetest onions are from Maui. For awhile I saw Maui onions sold in gourmet packets at my Safeway, but then they stopped carrying them. So I had to tell my sister in Hawaii to pack some in her suitcase whenever she traveled to the Bay Area for business. (Of course, she didn’t like the idea of smuggling onions into California and getting caught by some overzealous Homeland Security officer.)

Well, my friend found Maui onions sold at his Andronico’s, so he gave me some recently. Now with too many onions on my hand, the only thing I did was to make soup! Below is my recipe for French onion soup. This is one of my favorite soups and it’s also really easy to make. But doesn’t it look classic? The recipe is, of course, reduced a bit for one or two people and I added some depth with the Worcestershire sauce, which I love for anything meaty. The Maui onions made this soup taste wonderful, and I didn’t even mind that it was hot outside. (Luckily, we’re starting to get cooler evenings in the Bay Area—that typical San Francisco summer weather pattern!) Enjoy!