french onion soup & burgers

i adore my slow cooker and use it as frequently as i can, usually once during the week, and once on the weekend.  i came across a recipe on betty crocker website and followed it, mostly.  i didn't have broth on hand but i did have instant bouillon.  (more about that below) i also didn't have any mozarella but i did have a block of muenster. (also more about that below)  the soup served 6 with leftovers for french onion burgers, the second recipe in this post.  it's delicious!!!


french onion soup: this is my adaptation of the betty crocker recipe i found online.
ingredients:
2-3 onions, sliced thinly
6 cups water
2 T instant beef bouillon
**or 4 cans beef broth**
one turn of worcestershire sauce
4 T butter
s&p
loaf of french bread
butter
garlic salt
parsley
4-6 oz. cheese
preparation:
slice onions, add to crock pot
add in four cups of water
microwave until warm, 2 cups of water and stir in 2 T instant beef bouillon, add to crock.
add butter, worcestershire, s&p, and stir to combine.
turn crock on low for 8-10 hours
for french bread -- turn broiler on low (i do this because i inevitably burn bread otherwise...)
i happened to have the kind that was sliced lengthwise and pre-buttered, so i placed my slices of muenster on top and broiled until bubbly.  otherwise, you could use the prepackaged texas cheese toast, or slice your bread the "right" way, butter and season both sides, pile mozarella sky high, and broil until bubbly.
notes:
i am a fan of homemade but semi-homemade is sometimes just as delicious and takes a whole lot less effort.  i think if i make this again i'll use texas cheese toast and save myself the expense and time...


french onion burgers: i used the leftover soup to make these tasty burgers.
ingredients:
1 lb burger
sprinkle of lawry's
1 t parsley - i hear that you're supposed to rub the dried seasonings in your hands to help refresh the aroma and flavor before adding to a dish (shout out to rachael ray, actually...) 
sprinkle of garlic salt
sprinkle of onion salt
1 T bread crumbs
4 buns
butter
onion salt
1 cup french onion soup (could use a can of soup, make a packet of it, or simmer some onions in a can of broth)
sliced cheese
preparation:
preheat the oven to a low broil (again, i use low so i don't burn the bread)
thaw the burger and mix in seasonings and bread crumbs
form patties - 1/4 lb patties was perfect for us and fit right on the bun, but you could make them smaller)
fry 'em up!  (or grill if the weather permits)
while the burgers are cooking, butter the buns and sprinkle with onion or garlic salt or both
when just about done, remove burgers from the pan and add soup
bring to a boil and cook out some of the liquid, condensing the flavor
when you add the burgers back to the pan, throw the buttered buns in the oven
serve the burgers with a slice of cheese and a side of the au jus left in the pan!  
notes: 
these were delicious and everybody ate every last morsel.  the toasted buns added a nice crunch, and the au jus made it seem a little more like a restaurant burger.