Beer Cheese Soup with Garlic Rye Croutons

It's that time of year here in the Upper Midwest. The weather is cooler and the colors on the trees are changing. It's awfully gorgeous out, except for that whole 35 degrees thing this morning when I woke up. YUCK! The worst part is that the husband had to go run marathon #17. That's 26.2 miles people!!! That's quite an accomplishment!

So while he is running his marathon I had a few hours to kill before meeting him at the finish line. Since it was such a cold morning I decided it was time for soup! And not just any soup, but beer cheese soup! Oh and I added garlic rye croutons. Delicious. You can use any kind of crouton you wish, but there is nothing better than homemade croutons and the slight bitterness of the rye goes wonderful with the sharpness of the cheese. So on those cold days where nothing sounds better than a good bowl of rich, yummy soup try this recipe and make your tummy happy!

Beer Cheese Soup

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. Butter
4 Tbsp. Flour
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup carrot, diced
1 12oz. bottle of dark beer (one you would enjoy drinking)
1/4 lb. Vermont Cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 lb. Smoked Gouda cheese, shredded
1/4 lb. Gruyere cheese, shredded
1 cup milk or cream
4 cups Vegetable broth or stock
1 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Tsp. Pepper

Garlic Rye Croutons

1/2 loaf Rye bread, cubed into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

Note: Before you start to cook anything make sure you have all your dicing and shredding done as this soup tends to assemble quickly.

Heat the milk/cream and vegetable stock together in a pot. Do not boil as this may cause the milk to curdle.

Heat the oil and melt the butter in a heavy pot over medium heat. Cook the carrots, celery, and onions until soft. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two. Add the 1 tsp. of salt and the 1/2 tsp. of pepper. Sprinkle in the flour and stir until completely incorporated. Allow the flour to cook for a few minutes.

Add the beer and stir in well, scraping the bottom of the pot to get up all of brown bits off of the bottom (so much flavor there!). Whisk in the milk and stock mixture. Allow this to cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently until it starts to thicken. Using a immersion blender, blend until smooth(or if you don't have an immersion blender you can add small batches to a regular blender and blend til smooth. Don't add too much to the blender or it will expand too much and you will have a big mess!!!) You can omit this step if you like a chunkier soup.

Add the cheese and stir with a whisk until melted. Allow to cook over low heat for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the soup is cooking, toss the rye bread cubes on a cookie sheet with the olive oil, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Make sure to coat all the bread cubes well. Put them in a 425 degree oven and let them toast for 10-15 minutes or until brown and crispy.

When the soup is done cooking serve in bowls and top with the croutons. Enjoy!

Note: This soup reheats very well if you don't gobble it all down right away.