Celebrate The Holidays With This Festive and Easy Appetizer
This post is written in partnership with CK Mondavi and Family Wines. All opinions are my own.
Looking for a fancy but easy appetizer to make this holiday season? These “French Onion Soup” Bites give you all the elegant flavors of French onion soup in one bite! All you need to know is how to caramelize onions. That’s it! They’re perfect to serve for Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, or any time you’re feeling festive. Invite friends and family over and celebrate!
This recipe for French Onion Soup Bites is so easy, it’s almost ridiculous. The best part is your guests won’t know it! It simply requires caramelizing onions and a little assembly with store-bought phyllo shells topped with melted Gruyere cheese. You can even make French Onion Soup Bites as a crostini with a baguette or Italian bread if you can’t find the phyllo shells. The trick is to caramelize the onions properly and use my secret ingredient to give it the depth of flavor. Find out below!
Jump to RecipeI’m proud to partner with CK Mondavi and Family Wines to share this Easy Entertaining Recipe with you. They want to make your holidays even easier and stress-free. Their wines are a great choice for entertaining because of their high quality and value, and they have a wonderful giveaway this season.
Tips How To Caramelize Onions
Caramelizing onions requires patience. That’s it! Oh and one secret ingredient…
Don’t rush cooking your onions. Cook low and slow. This is how they get that yummy flavor. Yes, you’ll need onions. Sweet Vidalia onions are best. You’ll need olive oil to start sauteeing the onions. Then add butter, salt, and fresh ground pepper to season. I also add garlic and fresh thyme for extra flavor, as I would season my French Onion Soup.
Here’s the secret ingredient: add a touch of wine. The more flavorful the wine, the more flavorful your onions. The depth of flavors is there. The time it takes to caramelize is how you get the maximum flavor to show up. But don’t worry, you don’t have to stand over the hot stove the entire time. Just be sure you don’t forget to stir your onions every few minutes or so as you prepare the rest of your menu. Adjust heat based on your stove.
In this easy appetizer recipe, we are caramelizing the onions in about 35 minutes. Keep in mind that the more onions you have, the longer it will take. Don’t increase the heat to compensate. It can take up to an hour or more to properly caramelize onions. But I promise, the results are epic.
French Onion Soup Bites Recipe
The elegant taste of French Onion Soup in one bite! Perfect for holiday parties or any time you're feeling festive. Easy to prepare and so good you can't have just one! You may want to double the recipe!
- 2 sweet onions (thinly sliced)
- 2 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
- 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 3 sprigs of fresh thyme (leaves only)
- 1 Tbsp white wine (I used CK Mondavi Chardonnay)
- 15 Phyllo shells* (store-bought, 1 package) -OR- *substitute for 1 baguette
- 3 oz Gruyere Cheese (shredded)
Heat skillet on medium-low heat, coat with olive oil.
Add onions, sautée with butter, turn down heat to low. Cook onions, low and slow, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
- Season with salt, fresh ground pepper, fresh thyme and garlic and continue cooking on low for 10 more minutes.
- Add white wine and continue cooking, stirring occasionally for 5-10 additional minutes, or until onions are really soft and almost jammy, and caramel brown. Remove from heat.
- While onions cook, preheat oven to 350F
You can assemble right before everyone arrives and then pop in the oven for the final step when ready to serve
Place shells or baguette on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake 3-5 minutes, or until shells are lightly golden and cheese is melted.
Garnish with thyme leaves and serve warm
*You can substitute phyllo shells for crusty baguette or Italian bread and make Crostini. Brush the bread with melted butter or olive oil before adding caramelized onions
Stock Up on Wine!
As a CK Mondavi Ambassador for the past 8 years, I’m proud to serve these approachable, affordable, and high-quality All-American California wines. Based in Napa Valley for more than 75 years, CK Mondavi and Family wines are produced by the iconic C. Mondavi & Family with an uncompromising commitment to quality. Delivering wines that offer exceptional value, they focus on sustainable farming techniques and winemaking practices that are typical of far more expensive selections.
The family-owned and operated winery sources all of its grapes from California, including the family’s 1,850 acres of estate vineyards, along with growers who have partnered with the family for generations. CK Mondavi and Family wines are the first and only to be 100% “Made in USA Certified®,” and are trusted to be consistently reliable from year to year. They are a great value, easy to drink, and to pair with your holiday feast. Perfect for easy entertaining at home. Learn more at CKMondavi.com
What Wine Pairs with French Onion Soup Bites?
I paired my easy appetizer French Onion Soup Bites with CK Mondavi and Family Chardonnay. It’s a medium-bodied smooth and refreshing Chardonnay with flavors of apple and pear and a hint of oak. If you prefer reds, The CK Mondavi and Family Dark Cabernet Sauvignon will pair nicely as well. It’s a classic, dark red color, rich Cab with black fruit character and bold jammy flavors.
Save this post and make it the next time you have friends and family coming over. You’ll get great reviews!
Thank You to CK Mondavi & Family Wines for being wonderful partners. Don’t forget to look for the CK Mondavi wines wherever you shop for wines to get the best value and high-quality wines on the market (in my opinion). Be sure to follow @CKMondaviWines on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube for more recipes! I hope you’ll enjoy my French Onion Soup Bites recipe with family and friends and are inspired to celebrate life and do all the fun things you’ve been putting off to “someday.” Go #MakeSomedayHappen one delicious bite, sip, and trip at a time.
Cheers!
Go Epicurista
Disclosure: This post is written in partnership with CK Mondavi and Family Wines. As always, all opinions are my own. I only share with you products and experiences I love to inspire you to get together with family and friends, celebrate life, and go #MakeSomedayHappen one delicious bite, sip, and trip at a time! To learn more about my guidelines, check out my disclosure policy. Cheers!
These are good, and not difficult, but they take a lot of time. I found that when I added even more salt and pepper, that gave them more flavor, and I served them with mustard on the side, which took them to a whole new level.
Thanks Christina!
I have made this recipe several times for family & friends. Everyone loves it. I make the caramelized onions a day ahead, and then assemble the rest when ready to serve. My one substitution – I used Trader Joe’s mini-baguettes (in the frozen section). Toast them up, then cut lengthwise, and then in half. They are the perfect size for this appetizer.
Thank you so much for your comment. Mini-baguettes sound like a perfect substitution! This recipe is so versatile you can use it to top almost anything. I just made this again and also added sliced beef tenderloin for a next level appetizer. Cheers!
Everyone absolutely loved these! I used one large sweet onion and the 3oz of cheese and still got enough of everything to fill two packs of Phyllo shells! A huge hit and so easy!
I’m so happy to hear everyone loved these little bites! Thank you!