Country French Garlic Soup

Here’s a Country French Garlic Soup recipe (a rustic, comforting French-style garlic soup):

Ingredients

2 heads of garlic, peeled (or more if you like it very garlicky) (Cheryl’s Cooking)
1 small onion, finely chopped (gourmetmartha.com)
2 tbsp olive oil (Martharecipes)
2 tablespoons butter (optional, for richness) (tastygusto.com)
6 cups vegetable or chicken broth (tastygusto.com)
1 bay leaf (tastygusto.com)
½ teaspoon dried thyme (or a couple of sprigs fresh) (Martharecipes)
Salt and black pepper, to taste (Cheryl’s Cooking)
4 large egg yolks (tastygusto.com)
½ cup grated Parmesan (or similar hard cheese) (edilife.net)
Crusty bread (day-old is good), cubed, for serving (Umami)
Fresh parsley, chopped (optional, for garnish) (Cheryl’s Cooking)

Sauté the garlic and onion
- Heat the olive oil (and butter, if using) in a large pot over medium heat. (tastygusto.com)
- Add the garlic cloves and cook for a few minutes, stirring so they don’t burn. (edilife.net)
- Then add the chopped onion and sauté until soft and translucent. (Cheryl’s Cooking)
Simmer the soup
- Pour in the broth. (Cheryl’s Cooking)
- Add the bay leaf and thyme. (tastygusto.com)
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer (20–30 mins, depending on recipe) until the garlic is fully softened. (tastygusto.com)
Blend / Purée (optional)
- Remove the bay leaf (and thyme sprigs, if used). (gourmetmartha.com)
- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup until smooth, or carefully transfer to a regular blender in batches. (gourmetmartha.com)
Thicken with egg yolks & cheese
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the Parmesan (“liaison”). (wikemy)
- Temper the mixture: add a ladle of hot soup into the yolk-cheese mix, whisking constantly so the eggs don’t scramble. (tastygusto.com)
- Slowly pour this mixture back into the pot while stirring. Heat gently (do not boil) to thicken a little. (Cheryl’s Cooking)
Serve
- Ladle the soup into bowls. (Umami)
- Add bread cubes to the bowls so they soak up the broth. (For Foodie Friends)
- Garnish with chopped parsley, extra cheese, or a drizzle of olive oil (optional). (Cheryl’s Cooking)

To mellow the garlic flavor, you can roast the garlic instead of sautéing it. (Cheryl’s Cooking)
For a vegetarian version, use vegetable broth and a vegetarian cheese. (Cheryl’s Cooking)
If you like a smoother texture, blend the soup more thoroughly. (gourmetmartha.com)
You can adjust thickness by playing with how much bread you serve in the bowl — bread soaks up a lot.
Add a splash of vinegar or lemon juice at the end to brighten the flavor (some versions do this).

If you like, I can send a traditional Provençal “tourin à l’ail” recipe (an old French garlic soup version) — do you want me to do that?