Soup Season

I tried to go to my cancer support group last night but I-84 was at a standstill. There must've been an accident but I never saw it. I was incredibly late so I just went home. That's a fun time to battle horrible traffic for almost an hour only to veer off and go home anyway. Grrr. Hopefully next week. Instead, I swapped out my summer clothes for winter clothes, did some laundry, and made a delicious soup.

It's October, the weather's cooling off, and it's the beginning of soup season! I made one of my favorite soups, cauliflower and broccoli soup with gruyere. I got it from the What's Cooking Vegetarian cookbook that I got from Powell's a couple years ago. It's so hearty and delicious, and a great way to get your vegetables. The heartiness comes from taking half the vegetables out and blending them, then putting them back in. I enjoyed it in a big mug my mom made accompanied by a piece of my loaf-of-crap bread. It was the best. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients
3 T olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
10 ½ oz cauliflower florets
10 ½ oz broccoli florets
1 T all purpose flour
2 ½ cups skim milk
1 ¼ cup vegetable stock
¾ cup grated gruyere cheese
Pinch of paprika
2/3 cup light cream (I use fat free half and half)
Paprika and gruyere shavings to garnish

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion, garlic, cauliflower and broccoli for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the flour and cook for a further 1 minute, stirring.

2. Stir in the milk and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. Remove about a quarter of the vegetables and set aside.

4. Pour remaining soup in a food processor or blender and blend for 30 seconds until smooth. Transfer the soup back to the saucepan.

5. Stir in the grated cheese, paprika, and light cream and heat gently for 2-3 minutes without boiling or until the cheese starts to melt.

6. Transfer to warm soup bowls, garnish with shavings of cheese and dust with paprika.