Garlicky Cheddar Cheese Bisque

Rebecca and Thomas. The relationship that has been deepening for six years, steady and serious and intellectual and kind. Rebecca called this week to tell me that she and Thomas are buying a bookshelf together, which I understand, as a woman who has been married for forty-three years, is the academic equivalent of an engagement ring. You do not buy a bookshelf with a person you do not intend to stay with. A bookshelf is a commitment. A bookshelf is a merger of libraries, which for two literature professors is the most intimate act of union available. Rebecca is happy. Thomas makes her happy in the specific way that a fellow Chekhov scholar can make another Chekhov scholar happy: through shared sentences and mutual arguments and the particular intimacy of two people who love the same dead Russian and who find, in that loving, a way of loving each other.

I made Thomas a brisket when he visited with Rebecca on Sunday. He ate two helpings. I said, "Thomas, you always eat two helpings." He said, "Mrs. Feldman, your brisket defies the laws of appetite. You think you're done and then the brisket says otherwise." I said, "The brisket always says otherwise. The brisket is the most persuasive food in the Jewish canon." He laughed. He ate a third helping. I like Thomas. I have always liked Thomas. Thomas eats like a man who is planning to stay. The brisket confirms it.

I always serve a soup before the brisket — something warm and settling, something that tells your guests the meal is serious and that you mean it. This Garlicky Cheddar Cheese Bisque is what I ladled out before Thomas sat down to his first helping, and his second, and his eventually inevitable third. It is velvety and sharp and deeply savory, the kind of soup that makes a person lean back in their chair and understand, before the main course even arrives, that they are in a home where food is taken seriously. Thomas had two bowls of this as well. The brisket never had a chance.

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total Time: 50 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks celery, finely diced
1 medium carrot, finely diced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, freshly shredded
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
Salt to taste
Fresh chives or flat-leaf parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

Soften the vegetables. Melt the butter in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, until fragrant.
Build the roux. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir continuously for 2 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. The mixture will look thick and paste-like — that is exactly right.
Add the liquids. Slowly pour in the broth while whisking constantly to prevent lumps. Then whisk in the milk and heavy cream. Bring the soup to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently, and cook for 12–15 minutes until the soup has thickened noticeably.
Season the base. Stir in the dry mustard, smoked paprika, and white pepper. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
Melt in the cheese. Reduce the heat to low. Add the shredded cheddar in three additions, stirring each addition until fully melted before adding the next. Do not allow the soup to boil after the cheese is added, or it may turn grainy.
Blend if desired. For a silky-smooth bisque, use an immersion blender to partially or fully blend the soup. For a more rustic texture with visible vegetable pieces, leave it as-is.
Serve. Ladle into warm bowls and garnish with chopped chives or parsley. Serve immediately, with crusty bread alongside for the serious ones at the table.

Nutrition (per serving)

Garlicky Cheddar Cheese Bisque — The Soup I Serve Before the Brisket Says Otherwise