For lunch or for dinner, Onion and Fennel soup is a refreshing play on French onion soup. You will love having this soup canned up, on your shelf, at the ready for Onion and Fennel soup gratin.
Onion soups have been served since the Roman times and are still popular today. This version freshens it up with a hint of licoricey fennel.
Ingredients and variations
Ingredients: White and yellow onions, fennel, kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, ground thyme, dried marjoram, garlic powder, beef broth, cream sherry, Worcestershire sauce and apple cider vinegar.
Variations: White and yellow onions are used here but you can use any onion you like. White onions tend to be more mild than yellow. Beef broth or water and beef bouillon can be used. Change up the herbs, use fresh or dried. Apple cider vinegar gives this great flavor but can be left out if desired and the same goes for cream sherry. Do not replace with white vinegar.
Canning
Before you begin, be sure to do the safety checks on your canner per manufacturer instructions. Always inspect your jars for chips and cracks and wash all equipment needed for the canning project, in hot soapy water.
Be sure to check the recipe for recommended headspace and be accurate. This is important for shelf stability and safety. Consult the USDA Complete Guide to Home Canning and Preserving for more information. https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html
Process quarts and pints for exact time specified in recipe. Remember, if you choose to can in half pints, those will always process for the same time as pints.
Onion and Fennel Soup for Pressure Canning
1
hour60
minutes for pints75
minutes for quarts14
pints or7
quartsFrench onion soup, elevated!
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
6 lbs onions, cut in and sliced vertically 1/4 inch thick
4 bulbs fennel, tops removed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 cup cream sherry
15 cup beef broth or water
3 tbsp powdered beef bouillon if using water*
1 1/2 tbsp kosher, canning or sea salt
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Directions
- Inspect jars for cracks and chips. Wash jars, lids and rings in hot, soapy water. Prepare pressure canner per canner instructions, filling with water. Bring canner to a low simmer.
- In a large pot, cook onions and fennel in olive oil for 30 minutes until soft.
- Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil, cover, lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Fill warm jars leaving 1-inch headspace. remove air bubbles and add more soup if needed to bring back up to 1- inch headspace. Wipe rims, place on lids and rings fingertip tight. Put jars into simmering pressure canner.
- Process quarts for 75 minutes and pints for 60 minutes,
Notes
- To serve: heat soup in a pan, pour into a bowl, top with a toast or croutons and cover with gruyére, swiss o provolone cheese and place it under a broiler for 1 minutes or until cheese starts to bubble and brown.
