Cheeseburger Soup (small Batch)

By Mariealicerayner @MarieRynr

We are having a wet, misty, rainy day today and the temperature is a bit on the cool side. It is the perfect day to enjoy a hot bowl of soup. Loaded with plenty of beef, potatoes, vegetables and cheese, this cheeseburger soup recipe is a winner of a dinner recipe!

It is hearty and rich and delicious.  I adapted the recipe from one I found on this page, The Best Blog Recipes. It looked really tasty. How could I resist!  Their photos also looked amazing. I am a sucker for good food photos.  They draw me in every time!

I did cut the recipe in half, however. The original recipe made six hearty servings. I am only one person,  so reducing the recipe only made sense.

 
I measured out and froze two servings, before I added the sour cream. I wasn't sure about the sour cream freezing. I was afraid that it might split. It is always easy to add sour cream when I thaw it out and reheat it at a later date.  One  tsp in each serving will do the trick.
That is what I added to the serving I kept to eat on this day. It was rich and delicious. If you had leftover grilled burgers, you could also use them in this easy soup, crumbled of course.  With the grilling season just around the corner, this soup is a great way to use up any leftover burgers!
If you are not fond of ground beef you can also use ground turkey or even Italian sausage in this soup.  The Italian sausage would be especially delicious. Just saying!
 


WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHEESEBURGER SOUP (small batch)
Really simple basic ingredients. It looks like a long list, but there is nothing too far out of the ordinary here!
  • 1/2 pound (8 ounces/225g) extra lean ground beef
  • 2 TBS butter, divided
  • 1 small onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated
  • 1 small stalk of celery, trimmed and diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1/2 TBS Italian seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 2 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and diced into bite size pieces (1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 1/2 cups (360ml) chicken stock
  • 2 TBS plain all purpose flour
  • 2 cups (245g) strong/sharp cheddar cheese, grated
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
  • 2 TBS full fat sour cream
  • parsley to garnish (optional)

 
I buy my ground beef at a local farmer's market called Goucher's.  It is free range and organic. Also because it is grown and produced locally, it is traceable.   When I buy it I can be pretty sure that it is from only a few animals, or maybe even one,  not a hundred.
I have noticed lately that our shops are sourcing a lot of their beef from Mexico.  Why?
The beef I buy is frozen at source, in one pound packages. I bring it home, saw it in half, and then freeze it in 1/2 pound packages, which is just the right size for me.
 
The chicken broth I use is Better Than Bouillon. It comes in quite a wide variety of types. Chicken, beef and vegetable are the ones I can find locally. I buy all three and keep them in my kitchen.
I only keep whole milk in my kitchen. You don't have to use whole milk, but it does give a nice richness to the soup.  I also like to grate my own cheese. They add fillers to pre-grated cheese so that they flow easier. I don't want them in my food.
I also only buy full fat sour cream.  It is lovely and thick and rich. You can use a lower fat if you wish.
My butter is salted.  I can't afford to keep two kinds of butter, so salted is the one I keep. You can always adjust the amount of salt in a recipe to make up for it.


HOW TO MAKE CHEESEBURGER SOUP ( small batch)
This is a fairly straightforward soup to make.  I don't think it gets much easier than this! Quick, easy to make and delicious.  What more can a person ask for!


Scramble fry the ground beef in a skillet until well browned and cooked through. Set aside. Drain if necessary (It shouldn't be.)



Heat 1/2 TBS of butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until it begins to foam. Add the onion, carrots and celery. Cook until beginning to soften without coloring.


Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes longer until very fragrant.Add the beef, potatoes and chicken stock to the saucepan. Cover, reduce to a low heat and leave to simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until the potatoes have softened.

Melt the remaining butter and whisk in the flour to combine well and until smooth. Add this mixture (its called a roux) to the soup, stirring it continuously so that it melts into the soup and the soup begins to thicken.


Stir in the cheese, a bit at a time, stirring continuously until the cheese is thoroughly melted. Whisk in the milk and heat through.Stir in the sour cream. Remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Serve hot garnished with parsley if desired.Crusty bread is really nice with this!


 
This was a lovely rich, thick and cheesy bowl of soup. I enjoyed mine with some crusty bread on the side. I had bought a potato and chive loaf at the grocery store. It went down a real treat!
This soup would be lovely garnished with bacon bits, more cheddar and maybe even some chopped spring onion.  I did not have any of those things on this day so made do with parsley!
  
There is nothing goes down better on a cold day than a nice warm bowl of soup.  In the Winter, Autumn, or on cold rainy days in the early Spring.  Here are some other favorite bowls of soup we have enjoyed in The English Kitchen.
STONE SOUP -  Stone Soup was one of my children's favorite story when they were growing up  and so this simple cabbage, tomato and rice soup became known as Stone Soup. Its a deliciously hearty testament to what can be done with a bit of this, a bit of that, and a whole lot of nothing!  

HAM AND WHITE BEAN SOUP - A fabulously tasty soup filled with ham and white beans. You do need to plan ahead as the beans need soaking. One word describes this perfectly. Delicious. This isgorgeous ladled into heated bowls and served hot with some crusty bread.LITTLE MEATBALL SOUP - Its amazing what you can do with a package of macaroni, a tin of tomatoes, some stock cubes and a pound of Italian sausage!! This deliciously hearty soup is fantastic ladled into heated bowls and topped with a smattering of good grated cheese!  Some garlic toast on the side would be great! 


Yield: 3Author: Marie Rayner

Cheeseburger Soup

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 35 MinHearty, delicious and very easy to make. You can easily double this small batch recipe to feed more people. It also freezes well.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound (8 ounces/225g) extra lean ground beef
  • 2 TBS butter, divided
  • 1 small onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated
  • 1 small stalk of celery, trimmed and diced
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1/2 TBS Italian seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 2 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and diced into bite size pieces (1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 1/2 cups (360ml) chicken stock
  • 2 TBS plain all purpose flour
  • 2 cups (245g) strong/sharp cheddar cheese, grated
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
  • 2 TBS full fat sour cream
  • parsley to garnish (optional)

Instructions

  1. Scramble fry the ground beef in a skillet until well browned and cooked through. Set aside. Drain if necessary (It shouldn't be.)
  2. Heat 1/2 TBS of butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until it begins to foam. Add the onion, carrots and celery. Cook until beginning to soften without coloring.
  3. Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes longer until very fragrant.
  4. Add the beef, potatoes and chicken stock to the saucepan. Cover, reduce to a low heat and leave to simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until the potatoes have softened.
  5. Melt the remaining butter and whisk in the flour to combine well and until smooth. Add this mixture (its called a roux) to the soup, stirring it continuously so that it melts into the soup and the soup begins to thicken.
  6. Stir in the cheese, a bit at a time, stirring continuously until the cheese is thoroughly melted. Whisk in the milk and heat through.
  7. Stir in the sour cream. Remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Serve hot garnished with parsley if desired.
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