Roasted Garlic And Shallot Potato Soup With Cheesy Croutons

== Description ==
Source: Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2004 - Cooking Light Magazine
The strong cheese provide a good opportunity to enjoy a full-flavored ale that doesn't dominate the food. Try Fuller's ESB from London, or Dock Street Ale from Philadelphia. The caramel flavors of Guinness stout would also work well.
== Ingredients ==
* 5 whole garlic heads, unpeeled
* 3 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
* 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
* 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
* 10 shallots, unpeeled (about 3/4 pound)
* 2 cups coarsely chopped onion
* 1 cup dry white wine
* 3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
* 2 cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled baking potato (about 3/4 pound)
* 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
* 1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
* 16 (1/2-inch-thick) slices French bread baguette
* Cooking spray
* 3/4 cup (3 ounces) crumbled blue cheese
* 2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese
== Directions ==
# Preheat oven to 400°.
# To prepare soup, remove white papery skins from garlic heads )do not peel or separate cloves); cut off tops, leaving root ends intact.
# Place garlic in a shallow roasting pan.
# Drizzle 1 tablespoon oil over garlic; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
# Cover with foil.
# Bake at 400° for 20 minutes.
# Add shallots to pan.
# Drizzle 1 tablespoon oil over shallots; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
# Cover and bake at 400° for 25 minutes or until tender and browned.
# Cool.
# Squeeze garlic to extract pulp, peel shallots.
# Discard skins.
# Set garlic pulp and shallots aside.
# Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat; add onion.
# Cover and cook 15 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally.
# Add garlic pulp, peeled shallots, and wine.
# reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes.
# Stir in broth, potato, and thyme; bring to a boil.
# Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender.
# Cool slightly.
# Place half of potato mixture in a blender; process until smooth.
# Pour puréed mixture into a large bowl.
# Repeat procedure with remaining potato mixture.
# Return puréed mixture to pan; stir in milk, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
# Cook over medium heat 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
# Preheat oven to 400°.
# To prepare croutons, place bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet.
# Lightly coat tops of bread with cooking spray.
# Bake at 400° for 8 minutes or until lightly browned.
# Sprinkle cheeses evenly over bread slices.
# Bake 3 minutes or until cheese melts.
# Serve warm with soup.
Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 2 croutons)
Category:Low-calorie Recipes
Category:Low-fat Recipes
Category:Healthy Recipes
Category:Healthy Soups
Category:Healthy Main Dishes
Category:American Recipes
Category:American Main Dishes
Category:American Soups
Category:Garlic Recipes
Category:Oil Recipes
Category:Olive oil Recipes
Category:Salt Recipes
Category:Pepper Recipes
Category:Black pepper Recipes
Category:Shallot Recipes
Category:Onion Recipes
Category:Wine Recipes
Category:White wine Recipes
Category:Chicken stock and broth Recipes
Category:Potato Recipes
Category:Potato Soup Recipes
Category:Russet potato Recipes
Category:Thyme Recipes
Category:Milk and cream Recipes
Category:Milk Recipes
Category:French bread Recipes
Category:Cooking spray Recipes
Category:Cheese Recipes
Category:Blue cheese Recipes
Category:Parmesan cheese Recipes
Category:Alcohol Recipes
Category:Stock and broth Recipes