Cheddar Cheese Soup with Irish Soda Bread

Here is another favorite from my College Vegetarian Cooking book: Cheddar Cheese Soup with Irish Soda Bread. The soup is more like a chowder because it's thick and creamy, and it's especially good when you dip the soda bread into the soup. Both the soup and the bread can be made in about an hour. It's great for a chilly winter's day (although California really doesn't have those!). The photo makes the soup look a little weird... don't worry. It's much more orange in person and less... icky looking.

My brother isn't a big fan of this soup because he doesn't like onions, but the rest of my family loves it. My mom especially likes the soda bread, which is flaky and soft. Here's a tip for the soda bread: use a stand mixer with a dough hook. It will save you time and frustration. I've made it a few times by hand and I always had to have my mom come help me mix it together, because it's a sticky dough and hard to work with. The stand mixer fixed that completely. I was worried that it would overmix the dough and cause it to be tough, but that was not the case. It turned out perfectly.

When I made this (a few days ago), I discovered that our tin of oats would be expiring on New Year's Eve, so that leads into my next recipe... Triple Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies. Oh yeah.
I've also made this recipe with white cheddar and it was fantastic, so you can decide which one you want to use. Or try using both!

Cheddar Cheese Soup

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

2 onions

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup flour

2 1/2 cups vegetable broth

2 1/2 cups milk

Salt and pepper

2 cups Cheddar cheese (grated)

Instructions

1. Peel the onions and cut into thin slices.
2. Melt the butter in a large sauce pan, add the onions, and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the onions are translucent.
3. Add the flour and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute. 
4. Stir in the broth and milk and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper and simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.
5. Remove from heat, add the cheese, and stir until completely melted.
6. Eat.

Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients

Oil or cooking spray

3 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal

1 t salt

1 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

8 oz. sour cream

3/4 cup milk

3 T sugar

5 T butter (melted)

Instructions

1. Lightly coat a baking sheet with oil or cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Combine the flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. Combine the sour cream, milk, and sugar in another bowl. Add the sour cream mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just blended.
4. Stir in 4 tablespoons of the melted butter. Turn the dough out onto the prepared baking sheet and shape into a mounded circle about 8 inches in diameter. Brush the top with the remaining butter.
5. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until browned.
6. Eat.

Source: College Vegetarian Cooking