Cheese Onion Soup Pasta Casserole Recipe

Rich, cheesy French onion soup – nothing feels cozier. To make it a hearty meal, Leah Maroney takes all the flavors of French onion soup and adds hearty pasta and protein-rich ground beef to create this all-in-one recipe.

Caramelized onions are a must-have in any French onion dish. But don’t skimp on cooking time; these babies take a while to turn golden and succulent. Make sure the heat is not too high so the onions don’t burn before browning. The best choice of pasta for all the benefits of soup? Orecchiette. The little ears are like tiny bowls that delicately hold all the onions, meat and bubbly cheese.

Maroney likens this pasta to a fancy Hamburger Helper. “It’s got all the warm, cozy goodness of your favorite meal in one box. It’s still super easy to make, but it’s enhanced by the caramelized onions, white wine and Gruyere cheese.

Read more: Tips You Need to Cook with Ground Beef

Gather the ingredients for this Cheesy Onion Soup Pasta Casserole

Simple ingredients make the best dishes, and you’ll have this French Onion Soup Pasta Casserole purchased and on the table in no time. Gather the lean ground beef, salted butter, sweet onions, garlic, salt and pepper. A crisp white wine is used to deglaze the pan. Rich beef broth and heavy cream add thickness and a round, salty flavor. Orecchiette pasta is cooked in the bubbling liquid with fresh thyme. The hazelnut gruyere tops it all off.

Step 1; Preheat oven

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2nd step; Add the ground beef

Add the ground beef to a large grill-safe pot over high heat.

Step 3: add onions and garlic

Once the beef is browned, remove it from the pan, leaving the fat behind. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the butter, onions, garlic, salt and pepper to the pan.

Step 4: Caramelize the onions

Cook the onions, stirring frequently, until caramelized, about 20 minutes.

Step 5: Deglaze the pan

Add the white wine to the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze any browned bits.

Step 6: Reincorporate the Beef

Return the beef to the pan.

Step 7: Add broth and heavy cream

Add the beef broth and heavy cream. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.

Step 8: Add the pasta and thyme

Add the orecchiette and thyme to the pan.

Step 9: Cover and Bake

Cover the pan and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the pasta is al dente.

Step 10: Top with Cheese

Remove the pan from the oven and uncover. Remove the thyme sprigs and garnish with grated Gruyère cheese.

Step 11: Light the Grill

Set the oven to grill.

Step 12: Broil Until Bubbles

Broil in the oven until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

Step 13: Rest and Serve

Leave to rest for 5 minutes and serve.

What substitutions can I make in this dish?

If you don’t have ground beef on hand, you can substitute ground chicken or ground turkey. Believe it or not, you can even make this dish vegetarian! Simply skip the ground beef or replace it with vegetarian crumbles. Then replace the beef broth with vegetable broth. You can also add a cup of chopped mushrooms, whatever type you prefer, in place of the meat. Adding mushrooms brings a nice bite of meat and even more flavor to the pasta casserole.

You can also change the shape of the pasta in this French Onion Pasta dish. However, long noodles like spaghetti or linguine don’t work very well with this cooking method. Choose short pasta like elbows, medium shells or short rigatoni. The shorter shape will do a good job of holding the sauce and beef while cooking evenly in the oven.

How do you store French onion soup pasta?

French Onion Soup Pasta is even better the next day. The resting time after cooking is particularly important. The dish comes out of the oven so hot that it takes a few minutes for the noodles to cool a bit and fully absorb the sauce and flavors. So of course, the pasta stabilizes after a night in the refrigerator. Let the pasta cool, then simply store it in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

You can also freeze French onion pasta in an airtight container for up to 6 months. Whether reheating straight from the fridge or freezer, be sure to do so with a little water or extra stock. This helps the pasta regain some of its flavor. Pasta reheats well in a lightly oiled pan, but the microwave works too. You can always add a little extra cheese when reheating, even if it’s just grated parmesan…the more cheese, the better!

Cheese Onion Soup Pasta Casserole Recipe

Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 50 minutes Yield: 4 servingsIngredients

• 1 pound ground beef

• 1 tablespoon of salted butter

• 4 medium sweet onions, sliced

• 3 cloves of garlic, chopped

• ½ teaspoon of salt

• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

• ½ cup of white wine

• 2 ½ cups beef broth

• 1 cup heavy cream

• ½ pound of orecchiette

• Small bouquet of fresh thyme

• ½ cup grated Gruyere cheese

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Add the ground beef to a large saucepan over high heat.

3. Once the beef is browned, remove it from the pan, leaving the fat behind. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the butter, onions, garlic, salt and pepper to the pan.

4. Cook the onions, stirring frequently, until caramelized, about 20 minutes.

5. Add the white wine to the pan, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze any browned bits.

6. Return the beef to the pan.

7. Add the beef broth and heavy cream. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.

8. Add the orecchiette and thyme to the pan.

9. Cover the pan and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the pasta is al dente.

10. Remove the pan from the oven and uncover. Remove the thyme sprigs and garnish with grated Gruyère cheese.

11. Set the oven to grill.

12. Broil in the oven until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

13. Leave to rest for 5 minutes and serve.

Read the original article on the tasting table.