Stilton and Potato Soup With Cheese Croutons
photo by French Tart
- Ready In:
- 1hr
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Serves:
-
4-6
ingredients
- 5 ounces Stilton cheese, crumbled
- 1 ounce butter
- 1 onion, peeled & finely chopped
- 1 leek, cleaned and finely chopped
- 2 large potatoes, peeled & cut into small dice
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 6 fluid ounces dry cider
- 1 pint chicken stock or 1 pint vegetable stock
- 8 fluid ounces milk
- 2 tablespoons creme fraiche
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chives, chopped finely
-
CROUTONS
- 4 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 8 ounces stale bread, cut into small cubes
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
directions
- Melt the butter in a thick-based saucepan, then add the prepared vegetables and some salt, and cook gently with the lid on for 5-10 minutes to draw out the juices.
- stir in the cornflour to absorb the juices and, when smooth, gradually pour in the cider – still stirring.
- Add the chicken or vegetable stock, cover the pan and simmer gently for 30 minutes.
- Then add the milk and Stilton and re-heat, stirring, until the cheese has melted and the soup is just below boiling point.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper, then stir in the creme fraiche.
- At this stage you can purée the soup in a food processor or with a hand held blender or, if you prefer the texture of the chopped vegetables, keep it as it is.
- Serve the soup with the Parmesan croutons & the chopped chives.
-
CROUTONS:
- Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4/180C/350F or pre-heat the grill.
- Place the bread cubes in a bowl, sprinkle in the oil, then stir them around until the bread has soaked up all the oil.
- Next add the freshly grated Parmesan, and stir again till all the bread cubes are well coated.
- Spread them out over a baking sheet and either bake in the pre-heated oven for 10 minutes, or else place them under the pre-heated grill, turning as necessary. (If you use the grill, watch them VERY CAREFULLY as they can burn very easily.).
- The croutons can be made well in advance and stored in an airtight tin for up to two weeks.
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Reviews
-
Wonderful recipe FT! I used a little more Stilton then you called for ( LOL! you know my passion for that cheese! ) This is going into our family cookbook and will become a treasured addition to family events. Thanks FT, I have made this again with the addition of some fresh aspargus ( 6 stalks cut into 1 inch pieces and cooked with the other veggies ) again it is beyond belief!
-
I love potato soups, and this one tops all the other delicous ones I have made so far! I used one fourth the butter, wine for the cider, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. I topped it with Glutino parmesan bagel chips (which taste like croutons) and they were perfect on it. All such wonderful flavors together, a definite new favorite!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
<p><strong><span>The sunflowers in the field behind my house in SW France:</span></strong></p>
<p><img title=Sunflowers src=http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r271/copperhorse58/DSCN8221.jpg alt=Sunflowers width=640 height=480 /><br /><strong><span><br /><br />I am British (English-Scottish), but I was born in South Africa and have lived all over the world, including Hong Kong, Germany, Cyprus, USA & Singapore. I have also been very fortunate to have travelled extensively over the years.........I still have wanderlust! <br /><br />I used to be an English Literature & Art History teacher & lecturer; before that, I trained and worked as a Graphic Designer for many years. I now live in France with my husband & my daughter who has just started university in September 2006. We also have one very chatty Burmese cat Willow, who allows us to live with her here! (I used to have three cats, I recently lost Monty, a beautiful seal point Siamese and before that, Rama, who was a debonair blue point Siamese cat - I would love to have another Siamese cat or cats in the future!)</span></strong></p>
<p><em><strong><span>This is my Burmese Cat, Willow, sunning herself on the log pile in the kitchen garden:</span></strong></em></p>
<p><strong><img title=My src=http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r271/copperhorse58/ABaconButtyandSundryFoodPhotos34.jpg alt=My width=640 height=480 /></strong></p>
<p><strong><span>Here is my lovely Monty, a seal point Siamese, and Willow, sitting in the kitchen garden last year, and a few months before Monty died; he was 18yrs old:</span></strong></p>
<p><img title=Monty src=http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r271/copperhorse58/AbsolutelySinfulStickyToffeePudding.jpg alt=Monty width=640 height=480 />My</p>
<p><strong><span>This is my wonderful old boy, Rama, a blue-point Siamese, who died when he was 20yrs old - excuse the old and much sellotaped photo:</span></strong></p>
<p><img title=Rama src=http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r271/copperhorse58/Rama1stOctober2004164.jpg alt=Rama width=517 height=639 /></p>
<p><strong><span>My favourite pastimes are: reading, writing, painting & drawing, photography, gardening, anything creative, walking, travelling, dining out and of course COOKING! I love all types of cuisine, but especially Traditional British - and NO it is NOT all bad!! I particularly love food associated with the changing seasons plus traditional feasts & festivals, as well as Slow Cooking. I also enjoy French & North African cuisine, come to think of it, there isn't much I don't like! <br /><br />My husband & I run a Chambres D'Hotes, (Bed and Breakfast) called Auberge de la Fontaine here in beautiful South West France; we specialise in Gourmet Food & Wine Breaks, French Antiques & Restoration courses, French Language courses and French Cookery classes. Our home is completely furnished with Antique French furniture that we have rescued & restored ourselves. Our charming village has one of the oldest Churches in the region & it is famous for its connection with the St.Jacques de Compostella Pilgrimage route, as well as being within the Cognac & Bordeaux wine growing area. <br /><br />We have a wonderful garden where we grow ALL of our own herbs and most of our fruit and vegetables. I specialise in rare, unusual and old-fashioned herbs, which I grow in our walled garden. As well as growing herbs, I also grow many different varieties of lavender, old-fashioned shrub roses and heirloom fruit and vegetables. <br /><br />We have lived overseas for many, many years now - but we both still love going home to Northern England, near Scarborough & York, to visit our family & friends. We also love indulging in dining out when we are there, in a wide variety of EXCELLENT Gastro-Pubs that we have in North Yorkshire; and popping in to have a Pint of REAL ENGLISH ALE in our local pub is a always a must!! <br /></span></strong></p>
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