Soup, Glorious Soup.

As many of you know, I can eat soup no matter what the temperature outside may be. Unfortunately, my husband does not share my passion particularly when we are in the middle of an Arizona summer. Thankfully for me, it FINALLY feels like December here in Phoenix and that means, soup's on! One of our favorites is Beer Cheese soup, a recipe my parents made for my sister and I growing up. Warning: This recipe is not for the faint of heart especially if you have an aversion to butter, cheese and all things awful for your arteries. From our kitchen to yours.

Beer Cheese Soup

4 cups vegetable broth

1 medium onion, diced

4 stalks celery, diced

4 carrots, peeled and diced

1 stick of butter

1/2 cup flour

1 cup beer (I use Fat Tire or Blue Moon)

4 cups shredded cheddar cheese (better quality cheese seems to do well in this recipe)

Bring vegetable broth to a boil in a soup pot. Add onion, celery and carrot and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. While vegetables are cooking, in a small saucepan, melt butter. Whisk in flour to make a roux. Whisk often on medium heat for 5 minutes or until flour is cooked through. Stir beer into vegetable/broth mixture and let simmer for a couple of minutes. Add roux to cooked vegetables/broth and let heat through. This should thicken your soup. Last but not least, slowly add the cheese in handfuls mixing constantly so you don't get any clumps. Enjoy with plain popcorn sprinkled on top (how my parents serve it) or with a crusty piece of bread. Enjoy!

If you're in the mood to throw all caution to the wind, feel free to add a couple of chopped potatoes when boiling your vegetables. It will make your soup a hearty and starchy concoction of goodness.