Y'all, I have tried for half my life -- literally! -- to like beer. I started out with Bud Light in college of course, and quickly discovered it was better to be sober in the midst of a wild scrum at a fraternity party dance than to drink such swill. [Don't cry for me....I just switched to hard liquor. I've found very little of that I don't like. :) ]
As is befitting a graduate of Vanderbilt, I learned I could drink one of four beer brands anytime it was absolutely necessary to consume a brew:
- Killian's
- Foster's
- Shiner
- Beck's
Seriously, do a survey of upperclassmen at Vandy today and I suspect you'll still find those four beers oversubscribed, among anyone who's rejected the Buds, Millers and PBRs of this world.
But given the choice? Liquor, or even better, wine, any day. Friends have tried without any success to introduce me to quality ales. And porters. And whatever else there are. I just can't do it.
Yet today, the value of a really good beer showed up in my kitchen. I would never have denied that beer is an excellent addition to soup or bread. Not to drink with these dishes, mind you, but as an ingredient.
About twice a year, I get a craving for Welsh rabbit. If you've never had it, it's basically just a cheese sauce, often with tomatoes added, served over toast. Really, it tastes much better than it sounds.
Here's how I made mine today:
Welsh Rabbit
4 T. butter
1/2 c. flour
Salt
Pepper
1/2 t. dried mustard
1/2 t. paprika
2 t. Worchestershire sauce
1 1/2 c. milk
1 c. beer
6 oz. grated sharp cheddar
1/2 16 oz. can diced tomatoes, and some liquid
Melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, add spices and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn heat down to medium-low. Mix all the liquids, and whisk them in slowly. [I used a beer the Nashvegas' sister's boyfriend left here a while back. Peroni, an Italian number. Tasted great in the sauce. In general, you get the same results with cooking that you do with drinking beer: It's worth the cost to get something nicer.] The sauce should remain smooth throughout. If it starts to get lumpy, stop adding liquid and whisk a bit more. Cook for 5-10 minutes until sauce thickens further, but do not let it bubble. You'll curdle the milk.
Add the cheese and tomatoes and stir until the cheese is melted. Serve hot over toast.
Now, I enjoyed that for lunch quite a bit. And then I went for a walk this afternoon, trying to think what I had for dinner. I remembered I had most of a 5-lb. bag of potatoes, and I thought, wow, potato soup. I would really love some potato soup. Then I realized I had the makings of a really great soup. I could incorporate the leftover Welsh rabbit!!
Let's keep in mind, if you wanted to make a cream- or cheese-based soup, you probably wouldn't start by making Welsh rabbit, but would instead incorporate many of these separate ingredients at different times throughout your soup cooking. But I already had the Welsh rabbit. So here's what I did:
Potato Rabbit Soup
Olive oil
1 large onion
5 small Russet potatoes [probably about 2, 2 1/2 lbs. worth]
2 t. Herbes de Provence
3 c. chicken broth
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Garlic
1 recipe Welsh rabbit
1/2 16 oz. can diced tomatoes
Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, chopped to your preference. I like slivers in soup -- about 1/4 inch tall, 1 inch wide. Add herbs and a bit of salt and pepper, but don't overdo that right now. Always wait til your soup is almost done and taste then. It's practically impossible to fixed oversalted soup.
Peel about half of each potato. This is a personal preference of mine here. I really like potato skins in soup, but I don't want to feel like I'm eating potato peel soup, either. So I think about half the skin works out best.
Chop potatoes into 1/2 inch chunks. Add to softened onions, and immediately add chicken broth, bacon and garlic. If you want the bacon for crunch but not as much for flavor infused throughout, wait and crumble it on top. When you add it now, you get the flavor of bacon in all the ingredients. If you want your garlic stronger, wait and add it at the end, but I like it best as a subtle influence here.
Cook over medium heat [it's fine if it boils] until you can easily pierce the potatoes with a sharp knife. Turn heat down to low and add Welsh rabbit and tomatoes when boiling stops. Heat through and serve.
Note: If you had the Welsh rabbit in the fridge all afternoon like I did, take it out when you start this recipe so you're not adding it cold.
2nd note: This soup isn't thick. It's a rich, broth-like soup. If you want more of a cream soup, two options:
- Remove about 1 c. of broth before adding the Welsh rabbit [But don't skimp on broth to start with. You need that much to cook the potatoes.]
- Puree some or all of the potatoes
This was even better than the Welsh rabbit at lunch. The beer really gives it a delicious flavor.
