Cheddar Ale Soup

With all of the snow we have been having there is nothing better than a hearty bowl of warm comforting soup! This soup hits the spot! It is rich, thick and creamy,  not to mention the addition of sliced jalapenos and thick cut bacon garnishing the top. If that doesn’t warm you I don’t know what will! I had a number of taste testers on this one and we all agreed this was delicious and a must make again recipe!

INGREDIENTS
6 thick cut bacon slices cooked and crumbled (reserve 2 Tablespoons of the bacon fat)
2 Tablespoons butter
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery sticks, diced
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
1//3 cup of flour
1 cup of pale ale, I used Blue Moon
1 Tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
salt to taste
pepper to taste
1 jalapeno, sliced

DIRECTIONS
Put the two tablespoons of the bacon fat in a large stock pot. Add  butter and let the butter melt over medium heat. Add the diced onions, carrots and celery. Cover the pan and cook for about 25 minutes stirring often.  Add the garlic cooking for one more minute.  Add the flour and cook for five more minutes, stirring frequently.  The mixture will be very thick at this point. Add the beer and bring the mixture to a boil for about one minute. Reduce the heat to medium and add the worcestershire sauce, heavy cream, milk and chicken broth.
Let the soup simmer, stirring occasionally, keeping the temperature on medium for about 25 minutes then reduce heat to medium low. At this point you can use your immersion blender, or a regular blender and blend everything until smooth. If you are using a regular blender you will need to do this in batches. When everything is blended gradually whisk in the cheese and let the soup simmer for another 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Pour into bowls and top with bacon bits and sliced jalapeno’s .

Enjoy,

this recipe can be found at www.thecozycook.com