chēzˈbûrˌgər so̵̅o̅p

cheese·burg·er (chēzˈbûrˌgər) noun: A hamburger topped with melted cheese.
soup (so̵̅o̅p) noun: A liquid food, with or without solid particles, made by cooking meat, vegetables, fish, etc. in water, milk, or the like
     I have a confession to make:  I don't like soup.  I never have.  It is less than thrilling for me to be served a bowl of soup and I dislike the muddled tastes of most soups most of all, however this year in an effort to be more conservative and push myself to enjoy different things, I am on a mission to find soup recipes that I like.
This definetley fits the bill.  I dont know whether it is because its more chunky than most soups or because it has some of my favorite elements (HELLO CHEESE!!) but I really enjoyed this recipe and will most definetly be adding it to my repotoire of recipes that feed a crowd.




Cheeseburger Soup
1 lb ground beef

1 onion, diced
3/4 cup shredded carrot
3/4 cup chopped celery
1 teaspoon dried parsley
3 cups vegetable broth
4 cups potatoes, cubed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
1 1/2 cups milk
4 tablespoons butter or 4 tablespoons margarine
ketchup, mustard and sweet pickle relish for garnish.

In a large pot, brown ground beef and onion add broth, celery, carrots, parsley and potatoes. Bring to a boil, and then simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. In a saucepan, melt the butter and stir in flour. Add the milk and stir until smooth. Gradually add milk mixture to the soup, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Stir in cheese; continue to stir until cheese is melted. Make sure once you have added the cheese that you do not let it boil. Garnish with ketchup, mustard and sweet pickle relish and serve with crusty bread.

Heeeelllllo Gougeres!

     Tonight I was in the mood to try out a new recipe, and I wanted to try something completely different, so I jumped online and it seemed that there was a new group cooking their way through a French cooking cookbook and the first recipe was for gougeres.  Since I don't have the cookbook I wont try and join the cooking group, but the pictures intrigued me: puffy little flaky cheesy bites. Who wouldn't love that?
The recipe was super easy, and I will definitely be earmarking this one for easy entertaining, especially going into the holidays.

Gougeres

slightly modified from:
Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything

1 c water

4 T (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 c (about 7 oz) all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 c  grated Cheddar cheese
1 c grated Parmesan or other hard cheese
1/2 t black pepper
1/4 t chervil

Lightly grease a baking sheet and preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Combine the water, butter, and salt in medium saucepan; turn the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until the butter melts, just a minute or two longer. Add the flour all at once and cook, stirring constantly, until the dough holds together in a ball, 5 minutes or less.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating hard after each addition (I used my kitchen aid). Stop beating when the mixture is glossy. Stir in the cheeses, black pepper and chervil.
Drop teaspoonfuls onto the baking sheet and bake until light brown, 10-20 minutes.(mine took about 18-22)
I finished the gougeres with a couple of rough chopped tomatoes mixed with a little fresh garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt and rosemary.