Panera'S French Onion Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1/4 cup sweet creamy butter
8 cups sliced yellow onions (4 to 5 medium onions)
2 (14 ounce) cans beef broth
3/4 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon tomato sauce or 1 tablespoon ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
couple drops Tabasco sauce
focaccia bread
shaved asiago cheese

Preparation

Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add sliced onions and saute over high heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring often, until onions turn brown.
Add remaining ingredients (except bread and asiago) to the pot and stir to combine. (NOTE: to help the flour blend in, I recommend whisking it into the broth or water before adding) Heat soup until it's boiling, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.
Make croutons for the top of the soup by slicing foccacia bread (or other bread) into slices. Butter both sides of the slices, then cut into bite-size cubes. Bake the bread in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes or until crispy. (I cut bread into bite-size pieces first, then spray with spray butter).
Serve the soup with a handful of croutons and a couple tablespoons of shaved asiago on top.