Wisconsin Native's Beer Cheese Soup

"I've been a Wisconsinite most of my life (am originally from Minnesota) and while I don't proclaim to be a Beer Cheese Soup expert I do know what I like and I do know what tastes good. And this is so..." See moreme good soup! Given some of the reviews I had extra flour on hand in case it was too thin, and Velveeta in case it wasn't creamy enough. This needed neither. I wasn't crazy about the cooking method which I believe wasn't as good as it could have been. I didn't like the idea of boiling the vegetables rather than sweating them, and two different mixtures, a "beer mixture" and a "cheese mixture" was totally unnecessary. I sweated the vegetables in the butter for about 10 minutes, added the flour, then cooked that another couple of minutes. Stirred the half and half in gradually, added the beer, chicken broth, mustards and Worcestershire sauce, brought it to a boil and simmered for about 10 minutes, stirring fairly constantly, until creamy and thickened. I removed it from the heat, then stirred in the cheese a little at a time until combined. I garnished each serving with crisp, crumbled bacon which only gave it an extra flavor punch (I swear bacon makes EVERYTHING taste better!). This is creamy, silky smooth, not too cheesy but cheesy enough, and very pleasantly flavored. Sometimes cheese soups (especially in restaurants) can be gloppy and pasty but this was refreshingly light by comparison. So while the cooking method needed work this still is a solid four star recipe."

"Against my better judgment, I followed the instructions exactly. The finely chopped vegetables never got very soft and I cooked them for about 30 minutes. It smelled great, but the texture was disap..." See morepointing. We ended up straining out the vegetables. I used a bottle of Sam Adams Boston Ale, but it was a little bitter. I will make this again, but with the following 2 changes. I will saute the vegetables in butter until they are extremely soft, then I will simmer in the broth and a pale ale. "

"As is, this soup rates a 5. It's delicious, relatively simple, and includes my favorite veggies to have in creamy soup. I've made it a few times, just like the recipe and changed it once, adding dic..." See moreed red pepper, and cumin, along with half pepper jack, garnishing with tortilla strips, for a southwestern thing. Both versions are on semi-regular rotation now! Not only is this a great recipe, but it's a good jumping off point, too. Also, the flavor of the beer really shines through, and dark beers work better (not stouts, but a heavy lager is perfect!)."