Beer Cheese Soup

Tried this recipe the other night for dinner!  Oh my, super delicious!!  I served it with gluten-free corn muffins and it was a hit at my house!  I didn't serve it to my kiddos, since the beer is added so near the end, and I don't think they would like the taste anyway, it's pretty strong, so I just made them chicken and cheese quesadillas while my husband and I enjoyed the soup!

Enjoy!
Kirsten

PS: The recipe comes from the 100 Best Gluten-Free Recipes cookbook, by Carol Fenster.

BEER CHEESE SOUP

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1/2 cup finely diced celery
1/2 cup finely diced carrot
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
2 cups gluten-free chicken broth, divided
2 tablespoons sweet rice flour
2 cups grated mild Cheddar cheese
1 - 12 oz. bottle gluten-free beer
2 teaspoons coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or 1 teaspoon dried, for garnish
Sweet paprika, for garnish

1)  In a heavy soup pot, heat the butter over medium heat.  Add the onion, celery and carrot and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

2)  Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.  Add the salt, nutmeg, cloves, pepper and 1 3/4 cups of the broth.  Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

3)  In a medium bowl, whisk the rice flour with the remaining 1/4 cup broth until smooth and then add to the soup pot, stirring constantly, until the soup thickens slightly.  Remove the soup from the heat and stir in the Cheddar until it is thoroughly melted.

4)  Puree the soup in batches in a blender, or with an immersion hand blender if you prefer a smoother texture.

5)  Just before serving, add the beer to the soup and return the soup to the stove, bringing to serving temperature over low heat.  Garnish with the parsley and paprika and serve hot.

NOTES:

~I did not have white pepper, so I just used regular black pepper.  If you have white pepper, use that, but if you don't, don't sweat it!

~I recommend using a chicken broth that does not contain MSG.  The best thing is to make your own if you can!  I have a great recipe for it on my blog!

~I think I would recommend a lighter beer for this recipe.  I used an amber ale and it was pretty strong.  A little too strong, I think.  Next time I will try a pale ale or something a little lighter.

~You could also garnish with a little nutmeg, if you don't have any sweet paprika.  Regular paprika would work well too.  It's more just for looks anyway.