Friday, January 15, 2010

Today We Are Cooking

You've requested some of the recipes for dishes that were served at the dinner party and the Bunco night.

I apologize for the dearth of real-time photos but in preparation for the dinner party I was flying around the kitchen like a whirling dervish.

The most popular course at dinner was the soup. By the time we reached the dessert house it had reached a legendary status and everyone was asking me for the recipe.

As I served the soup, one of my guests admitted that she was not a fan of blue cheese. But after several spoonfuls she was a fan. It's not an overpowering taste, just a hint of blue cheese. Of course, if you like a strong blue cheese taste you could probably add more.

Grab your aprons and let's get started.



PRINTABLE RECIPE

Melt your butter. Use real butter please. Margarine is one molecule away from being plastic. Add the vegetables and saute very slowly.



I mince the vegetable very fine because I like this soup to be more of a cream soup.

Add the flour, cook for a few minutes, stir constantly. If you skip this step your soup will have a pasty taste. You need to cook the flour just a bit. Add warmed chicken broth slowly, whisking as you pour. This is prevent lumping.

Simmer for 2 minutes. It will thicken up. Add the blue cheese and stir until smooth. The cheese will start to melt. Add the milk and cream and heat to serving temperature. DO NOT BOIL because the mixture will curdle and you'll be crying in your soup.

Add sherry and pepper. Garnish with some green onions and some sour cream (if desired).

In order that I'm not doing everything at the last minute, I'll prepare the soup up to the point where the milk and cream are added. Turn the heat off. Just before serving, heat the flour mixture again and finish with the cream and milk.

Do not use the blue cheese that comes pre-crumbled and packaged in a plastic tub. This is usually very low quality cheese.

Please try this recipe and tell me what you think. It's always a hit around here.

This recipe was from my friend Linda, who lives in the area of Iowa where they make Maytag blue cheese.

MAYTAG DAIRY FARMS



8 comments:

Jenni said...

This is why I could never do a cooking blog. I like to cook and I like to take pictures, but trying to do both at once, especially when I'm cooking to feed people rather than just cooking for fun and at my leisure, drives me batty. I also think you have to have a pretty large kitchen or be a very neat cook to get nice photos while you're cooking. PW has a VERY large kitchen;o) The soup sounds fabulous, and I will be trying it very soon. I didn't know the quality of the crumbled cheese isn't as good. I've been using that for my blue buffalo macaroni, so I'll try a hunk from the cheese case next time instead to see if it improves the flavor.

Nancy H. said...

Thanks for this recipe Suzanne. I am having a few friends over tomorrow night and I think this soup will be very nice to serve.

Mary Rex said...

I will definitely try this. I love blue cheese. I make a blue cheese dip that calls for dry sherry, and it really does add something. I do recommend getting a pretty good bottle of the stuff...the last bottle I purchased was very inexpensive but undrinkable...leaving plenty for cooking;)

Lisa D. said...

I love blue cheese. I can't wait to try this soup.

Vee said...

Why was I thinking Blueberry Blue Satin Soup? Okay, two people love blue cheese here so I will give this a try. We all like soup so perhaps the third person will learn to like blue cheese the way your friend did.

Anonymous said...

Love blue cheese -- and can't wait to try the soup. Happy New Year to you, Suzanne!

George Gaston said...

Suzanne, this sounds amazing. I absolutely love anything with blue cheese. Definitely going to make this soup. Thanks...

Chris said...

This recipe is a keeper! Soup + blue cheese, the perfect match.

I love Maytag Blue Cheese. It used to be the only way I got it in California was by mail order. Then someone wised up out here and I can now find it in the grocery store.

Thanks for a great recipe. Chris