Beer-Cheese Soup

Beer-Cheese Soup

Beer-Cheese Soup is traditionally German but is also popular in the Midwest, where fall and winter weather makes it a welcome bowl of warmth. This recipe was stolen with permission from Chef Carlyn Berghoff, of the Berghoff Restaurant, Café and Catering in Chicago, Illinois. 
The Berghoff Restaurant, located in the heart of Chicago’s downtown Loop district, was founded in 1898 by German immigrant Herman Joseph Berghoff, whose dark Dortmunder-style beer was a hit at the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893. He opened the Berghoff Café in 1898, selling beer for a nickel and giving away sandwiches. The Berghoff stayed open through the Prohibition era by expanding into a full-service restaurant, and was the first Chicago restaurant to apply for a liquor license when Prohibition ended in 1933.Today, Herman’s great-granddaughter Carlyn Berghoff runs the Berghoff Café and Berghoff Restaurant, offering new lunch and dinner options, plus many of the old German favorites. And at the bar, you can still order Berghoff draft in a stein. Carlyn calls it “tradition with a twist”.
Carlyn’s tricks for making this soup perfectly are using freshly grated cheese (packaged pre-grated cheese from the supermarket doesn’t melt well) and not letting the soup boil during or after adding the cheese. She serves it with a plain or caraway pretzel, or with freshly popped popcorn and suggests putting the bowl of popcorn on the table and let everyone add it to the cheese soup as they eat. You can use any Berghoff beer with this, but Carlyn’s favorite is Berghoff Original Amber.

About the chef: Chef Carlyn Berghoff, CEO of the Berghoff Catering & Restaurant Group, is the fourth generation to continue the Berghoff legacy. An author, chef, restaurateur, caterer, wife and mother, she coauthored The Berghoff Family Cookbook and The Berghoff Cafe Cookbook, which was released in September 2009. 
She graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and now operates out of Chicago’s century-old Berghoff building, her base for off-premise catering. She also runs the restaurant, bar, and the historic café. Carlyn lives in Chicago with her husband and three children.

Berghoff Restaurant
17 W. Adams Street 
Chicago, IL 60603 
312 427 3170

Beer Cheese Soup is served at Berghoff Restaurant for $4.95
This recipe makes eight 1cup servings.

Beer Cheese Soup Ingredients:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups finely chopped leeks, white and pale green parts only (about 2 medium-size) 
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups whole milk, at room temperature
2 cups chicken broth
1 (12-ounce) bottle Berghoff Amber Beer, or any other amber beer
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups freshly shredded mild Cheddar cheese
2 cups freshly shredded Swiss cheese
Fresh Baked Pretzels or freshly popped popcorn, for serving

Note: Leeks are available in the produce section already cleaned and ready to use. If you buy whole leeks, cut off the root end and discard. Then cut off the upper dark green parts and save for soup stock. Use only the white and pale green parts of the leeks. Cut the leeks horizontally into 2-inch lengths. Separate the ribs and soak and swish in a bowl of cold water or rinse under cold running water to remove the sand or grit.

Beer Cheese Soup Steal This Recipe® Step by Step Instructions:
In an 8- to 10-quart stockpot over medium heat add the leeks, garlic, bay leaf and butter and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks are tender, about 6 minutes. 
Decrease the heat to medium-low, sprinkle the flour over the leek mixture, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often. 
Slowly whisk in the milk, 1 cup at a time, and cook, whisking, until smooth and fully thickened. (This takes some time, so don’t try to rush this step.)
Slowly add the broth and beer, whisking constantly until fully incorporated. 
Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes, whisking occasionally from the bottom to prevent sticking and burning. 
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the Worcestershire, mustard, salt, and pepper.
Add the cheese by handfuls, stirring constantly. 
Cook over medium heat without boiling until the cheese is melted, 3 to 4 minutes. 
Keep the soup warm until ready to serve. Stir well before serving with fresh pretzels or a big bowl of fresh popcorn.
The soup may be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave on medium power or on the stovetop, in a hot-water bath, until hot.

Variations:
*Instead of grating cheese at home, have the deli slice the cheese thinly. Then add to the soup slice by slice.
*Use half sharp and half mild Cheddar.
*Substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth.