Baked onion soup with wholemeal cheese cobblers

The days might be warm, but if the evenings are chilly this soup's a perfect evening meal

• Preparation: 20 mins
• Cooking: 35 mins
• Serves: 4

What you need:

• 50g butter
• 4 large onions, sliced
• 225g self-raising wholemeal flour + 2 tbsp
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 litre beef stock
• 50g reduced fat hard cheese, grated (e.g. Cheddar)
• 150ml semi-skimmed milk

What you do:

1. Preheat the oven to 200oC, gas mark 6.
2. Heat 10g of the butter in a large saucepan and gently fry the onions for 15 minutes covered, until softened and golden. Add 2 tbsp flour and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and stock and bring to the boil stirring. Transfer to a casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, rub the remaining butter into the 225g flour to form breadcrumbs. Stir in the cheese and seasoning and stir in enough of the milk to form a dough. Knead slightly on a floured surface then roll out to 1.5cm thick and cut 8 circles using a 7cm round cutter.
4. Place on top of the soup and bake for a further 15 minutes until cooked.

Cook's tip:

Try adding a dash of white wine with the stock to give an extra rich flavour.