when i was growing up in moorhead, my family used to frequent a restaurant called 'The Grainery'. it was a very cool place with ice cold jars of pickles on each tabletop and the greatest beer cheese soup on earth...until now.
when i first went vegan i thought "no more beer cheese soup for me," but i was wrong. i am amazed at the power of tofu...is there anything it can't do or be?
beer 'cheese' soup and homemade croutons
1 package silken firm tofu
3 cups no-chicken broth (preferably the 'better than bouillon' brand)
1/2 lite beer
2 onion bouillon cubes, crushed
3 green onions - minced
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley - chopped
1 tbsp brown rice flour
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
red and yellow food coloring (*optional)
for garlic croutons, see croutons recipe
in a food processor, put blend your tofu, onions, parsley, bouillon cubes, olive oil.
in a separate pan, bring 3 cups broth to a high heat. slowly add that to your tofu mixture. blend a little more then transfer to a pot.
add your beer and salt and pepper to taste.
simmer for approximately 15-20 minutes and use the brown rice flour mixed with a little broth to thicken to your desire.
add a little red and yellow food coloring to create the "cheese" coloring. if you are a purist, you can certainly leave it out. Megan from http://sistersvegan.blogspot.com suggests using turmeric or paprika for color. Thanks Megan!
continue to taste until it creates that creamy, rich beer cheese taste.
top with homemade croutons or fresh popped popcorn.
serve with a cold beer and ice cold pickle.
enjoy!



I miss the Grainery so much. I am not vegan and sure would like the original recipe for their beer cheese soup. That was the best beer cheese soup ever.
Posted by: Gretchen | November 03, 2009 at 03:16 PM
This sounds delicious! I think that I would add some nutritional yeast and tahini for some extra tangy cheesiness! :)
Posted by: Michelle | September 24, 2009 at 04:05 PM
The name intrigued me, I think this would be a delicious meal
Posted by: David Wolfe Rawfoods | August 09, 2009 at 03:02 PM
Adele-
Thanks for stopping by...Unfortunately I am not a big fan of nutritional yeast. I find that it tends to dominate the flavor of the food, so I try not to use it if at all possible.
Take Care!
Meagan
Posted by: Meagan | March 29, 2009 at 09:42 AM
This sounds great! Have you ever thought of adding a bit of nutritional yeast to add more "cheese" flavour to it?
Posted by: Adele | March 28, 2009 at 12:25 PM
Lisa-
I find onion bouillon in the Spanish foods section of my local grocer. However, if you cannot find it, you could try a veggie bouillon...just something to give it that "salty kick"...perhaps Garlic bouillon?
Best of luck and thanks for stopping by!
Best-
Meagan
Posted by: Meagan | March 25, 2009 at 06:46 PM