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Cheddar-Ale Soup

December 2006

Your rating: None Average: 3.5 (25 votes)

Our cheese- and beer-lover's potato soup has only a fraction of the fat and sodium of a traditional recipe. We use low-fat milk and only a little oil and keep the flavor strong with zesty, sharp Cheddar cheese. Precooked diced potatoes, which you can get at many supermarkets, keep this recipe super speedy. Regular diced red potatoes also work—you'll just need to increase the cooking time.



READER'S COMMENT:
"Making this soup only using the recipe is bland. However adding cayenne pepper kicks it up several notches. I also add more cheddar maybe a full 2 cups, i never measure, guesstimate. Bags of pre-cooked pots sound gross to me so I use only...
Cheddar-Ale Soup Recipe

6 servings, 1 3/4 cups each

Active Time:

Total Time:

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 12-ounce bottle beer, preferably ale
  • 2 18-ounce bags precooked diced peeled potatoes, (see Ingredient Note)
  • 1 14-ounce can vegetable broth, or reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 1/2 cups nonfat or low-fat milk
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
  • 1 small red bell pepper, thinly sliced or finely chopped

Preparation

  1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add beer; bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Add potatoes, broth and water; cover and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and mash the potatoes with a potato masher to the desired consistency.
  2. Whisk milk and flour and add to the soup. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in 1 1/4 cups Cheddar and stir until melted. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese and bell pepper.

Tips & Notes

  • Ingredient note: Look for precooked diced potatoes in the refrigerated section of most supermarket produce departments—near other fresh, prepared vegetables. To make your own, peel 2 1/4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and boil until tender (about 15 minutes).

Nutrition

Per serving: 389 calories; 12 g fat ( 5 g sat , 2 g mono ); 32 mg cholesterol; 50 g carbohydrates; 16 g protein; 5 g fiber; 408 mg sodium; 238 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Calcium (34% daily value), Vitamin C (32% dv), Vitamin A (19% dv).

Carbohydrate Servings: 3

Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 high fat meat, 1/2 fat


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Recipe Categories

Publication
December 2006
Total Time
45 minutes or less
Preparation/ Technique
Saute
Ethnic/Regional
American
Meal/Course
Dinner

Servings
6
Season
Winter
Fall
Spring
Ease of Preparation
Moderate
Holiday
Super Bowl
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