ONION SOUP GRATINÉE

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
4 medium yellow onions, peeled, halved through the stem end, and sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, peeled and thinly sliced
4 sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 quarts Chicken Stock
1/2 cup port
6 slices of country bread, about 1 inch thick, toasted
2 cups Gruyère cheese, coarsely grated

1. In a 5-quart Dutch oven or other large, heavy pot, heat the olive oil over a medium flame. Add the onions and, stirring frequently to prevent burning, sauté until they reach a golden color, approximately 30 minutes. Add the butter, garlic, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and pepper and cook for 10 minutes. Raise the heat to high, add the white wine, bring to a boil, and reduce the wine by half, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the Chicken Stock and simmer for 45 minutes.

2. Preheat the broiler.

3. Remove the thyme sprigs and bay leaf, and swirl the port into the finished soup. Ladle the soup into 6 ovenproof bowls. Fit the toasted bread into the bowls on top of the liquid, and sprinkle 1/3 cup of Gruyère onto each slice. Place under the broiler for 3 minutes, or until the cheese melts to a crispy golden brown. Allow the soup to cool slightly, about 3 minutes, before serving.

Serves 6

SOLE A LA MEUNIERE

6 Dover sole fillets
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper, plus more to taste
3/4 cup flour (Wondra or all-purpose)
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
Juice of 2 lemons (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Dry the sole fillets and season both sides with 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and the white pepper. Dredge the fillets in the flour and shake off the excess.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large nonstick sauté pan over a medium-high flame. When the oil smokes, add 2 fillets and cook for 3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a baking sheet, place in the warm oven and continue with the next 2 fillets. Add oil as necessary, heating to the smoking point before adding the fillets. Repeat with the remaining 2 fillets.

Transfer all the cooked fillets to the oven and wipe the sauté pan clean with a paper towel. Add the butter to the pan over a medium flame. It will melt, foam, and subside, and then begin to bubble again and turn a nutty brown. Add the lemon juice, parsley, the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, and several grindings of white pepper to taste. Serve the fillets on warm plates with the sauce spooned over.