celery & blue cheese soup

The peak of the summer season may not be the perfect time to enjoy a steaming bowl of soup but as dedicated soup lovers, we always enjoy it anytime of the year. Before I made this, the idea of making soup with celery hasn't crossed my mind at all nor would I have thought that it would even be this good. It can be made richer with the addition of cream or half and half but I omitted it to highlight the celery flavor. We've been getting bunches of celery lately from our organic produce box that we had to think of other ways to use it up. I read that it's best to use organic celery for better flavor.

As often I as make soup, I'm glad about the invention of the hand blender. It has now become one of my most used gadgets in the kitchen. The convenience of not having to transfer a simmering pot of soup in a blender or food processor is a huge time saver for me. Aside from that, it also eliminates mess and extra clean-up.

CELERY and BLUE CHEESE SOUP
(adapted from The Book of Soups by Lorna Rhodes)

1 head celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 tablespoons butter
3-4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 beaten egg
1/4 cup half & half (optional, I omitted this)
1/2 cup or more crumbled blue cheese
salt and pepper to taste

GARNISH:
additional crumbled blue cheese for topping
celery leaves

Reserve celery leaves for garnish. Melt butter in a large saucepan or soup pot and cook onions until translucent then add the chopped celery and simmer until tender. Pour in the chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper. Puree soup (with a hand blender or in a food processor) then add a little amount to the beaten egg to temper it before adding the mixture back to the hot soup. Puree again to make sure the mixture is smooth. Stir in finely crumbled blue cheese and adjust the seasonings. Garnish with celery leaves and more crumbled blue cheese if desired.

using a hand blender to puree mushroom soup