Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Hey all! (if anyone's reading this)

I'm in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA visiting the lovely Whitney Snyder (Peakbagger's finest beer wench), and decided to cook up something delicious to thank the Snyders for their hospitality.

Today's Recipe is a roasted red pepper soup garnished with avocado and smoked Gouda cheese to add some richness to the otherwise fresh pepper flavors. I chose 'Spaten Optimator' as the beverage pairing for the beers' complimentary sweet and roasted malty flavors, as well as the clean, german-lager finish to wash the palate for the next bite. However, you can pair it with almost any Munich lager or rauchbier for an excellent compliment to the roasted and smoked tones of the soup.

Peakbagger's Smoked Pepper Soup
Yields: 5-6 qts of soup

Ingredients:

8 Red Bell Peppers
5-6 Roma Tomatoes
2 Yellow Bell Peppers
2 Green Peppers
2 Medium sized onions
2 sprigs fresh basil
1 full garlic clove
2-3 cups white wine (in this case, I used McManis Pinot Grigio)
3 qts chicken or vegetable stock
1.3 cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 cup flour
Juice of one lemon
cayenne pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup grated smoked gouda.


1) Begin to make a roux in a large, thick crock. Add one cup flour to 1.3 cups extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Stir constantly, whisking out any lumps. Continue stirring until the roux reaches a rusty-red color (this will take anywhere from 1-1.5 hours, so continue to the next steps once you get the roux going, but keep stirring! its helpful to have a little sister in situations like this) The longer you cook the roux, the better it will be, so be patient!

2) Blacken the red peppers using a flame stove, blowtorch, grill, or broiler until they are black on each side, place them in a large bowl, splash with 1 cup of wine(speeds cooling), cover with foil, and set aside until cool. When cool, scrape the blackened skin, and remove seeds from the peppers, saving any juice that is inside the bell (if you can't get rid of all the seeds, don't worry too much). Cut the peppers into sugar-packet sized pieces.

3)Dice the onions, celery, and garlic into small pieces.

4)Cut the roma tomatoes into medium sized pieces for roasting, and place with half of the onion, celery, and garlic in a stainless steel bowl with 1 cup of wine, and 1/4 cup of olive oil. Mix well, salt and pepper liberally. Pour the entire mixture onto a baking pan with a raised edge, roast at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until onions are fully cooked, and all liquid is simmered off.

5)When the roux reaches the desired color (dark brown/red), add the remaining half of the onion, celery and garlic. Brown well, then add the stock, stirring constantly.

6)Puree the roasted tomatoes, garlic, onions, and peppers to your desired texture in a blender, and add into the pot. Add sour cream, heavy cream, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, basil, and 1 cup of grated smoked gouda cheese, and stir vigorously, or use immersion blender, if you have lots of gadgets :) Simmer for at least one hour. Season to taste AFTER the soup has reduced.

Garnish with roasted red pepper slices (or grilled avocado) top with grated smoked gouda and enjoy with a tall glass of Spaten Optimator!