Vegan Grilled Cheese and Onion Soup

       Yesterday was such a long day! I slept in from my big Chicago trip, and I decided to cook a really nice meal. I checked my Facebook, and what a coincidence! My lovely sister posted a recipe on my wall. Thank you http://www.olivesfordinner.com for these wonderful guidelines. 


What you'll need:
for the cheese
1/2 can full-fat coconut milk (if you don't have a can, assume the that it is 8oz. Use 4oz (half a cup))
1/2 TSP coconut vinegar
1/2 TSP salt
1 TSP agar powder
1/2 TB tapioca flour
1 TB nutritional yeast (nooch) (This is a yellow color. Don't get Dry Active yeast! Only Nutritional Yeast.)

for the soup
3 large onions
5 TB Earth Balance (Earth Balance is a type of vegan butter, get it in a tub.)
Salt
1 TB flour
1/2 cup sherry
4 cups vegetable stock with ONE Not-Beef bouillon cube

5 springs of fresh thyme (or thyme tied with bakers twine)
2 bay leaves

to make the sandwiches
Whole wheat bread, sliced
Earth Balance

Preheat the oven to 350.

To make the cheese

Combine all of the cheese ingredients except for the nutritional yeast in a small saucepan. Whisk briskly continuously until the mixture comes to a boil. It should feel kind of harder to move around, and it should look like a marshmellow that just got heated. Remove it from the heat, stir in the nooch (nutritional yeast) and take it off the stove. Cover the pot and chill in the refrigerator for an hour.

To make the soup

Start by slicing the ends off of the onions and peeling them. Slice them vertically in half, then slice each half making the onions as large or as small as you want. In a large bowl, put 5 TBS of Earth Balance in and stick it in the oven. Let the earth balance melt. As soon as it melts, put the onions in and sprinkle with some salt. Place a top over the big bowl, and let it cook for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, uncover the bowl and sprinkle and stir the onions with a little more salt. Stick it back in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour more, stirring no more than two or three times, to allow the color to deepen. 

Once that is done, drain the onions of the butter, and put back into the same big bowl. Sprinkle the onion with flour and stir well for about a minute. Add in the sherry to deglaze the pot, then stir to combine. Allow to sit for 5-7 minutes more, then remove about 1/2 cup of the onions and place to the side.

Take out a large soup pot and put your vegetable stock in. Put that on the stove, and pour in your onions. Grab your Not-Beef bouillon cube and put that in, too! Put in a pinch of thyme, and put on medium heat. 

To make the sandwiches

While the soup is simmering, heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Remove your cheese from the refrigerator and mash it around with a fork. Spread a thin amount onto a piece of bread. Place a little Earth Balance onto the hot skillet, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. Place the bread on top of that, cheese side up. Once your whole wheat bread is toasted, quickly flip it over to allow the cheese to slightly melt, only a second or two, then flip back over, cheese side up. Spoon some of the reserved onions over the top. Toast another piece of bread, and coat lightly with 'cheese' - the same way you did the first time, only don't add more onion. After that is ready to go,place that on top of your sandwich.

Return to your soup, and turn the heat off, or just lower the heat to simmer. Serve immediately with the sandwich.

If you have any questions or concerns please email me at: thevganteen@gmail.com
Hope yours turns out great!
-Ilana xo