Creamy Serrano Pepper Soup

The last pepper plants in my garden this year seem like they are never going to stop producing.  We started growing our Serrano and Cowhorn pepper plants from seed way back in April and here we are in late October and we are still getting a handful of peppers from each plant every week or so.

After making more than a few batches of Cowhorn Pepper Sriracha Sauce and a delicious Mexican Pork, Poblano and Serrano Stew, today it was time to turn the Serrano peppers into a soup, a recipe I've been thinking about for a long time.  I knew the peppers would be great in a soup, I just needed the right combination of ingredients to bring out all of that bright pepper flavor.  So here we go!

For day 27 of Soup Month 2014 we made a beautiful Creamy Serrano Pepper Soup.  With sweet red peppers to balance out the heat of the Serranos and a creamy spring onion jack cheese, this soup has the perfect amount of heat and flavor, with a velvety smooth texture.  Every bite is full of flavor and every once in a while you'll hit one of those spicy bits of Serrano. Yummy!

For our soup we used 5 Serrano peppers with the seeds removed, but you can always more or less peppers depending on your own preferences, or choose to incorporate all of the seeds.  The Spring Onion Jack Cheese was a great find from our local Publix store, but if you can't find it, you could always use a Monterrey Jack cheese.

This soup made a great side dish with smoked pork sandwiches, but I think it would be delicious served with grilled steaks.  We might just have to try that next weekend!  Enjoy!!

4 TB  Salted Butter
1/2 cup  Minced White Onion
2  Red Bell Pepper, chopped
5 or 6  Serrano Peppers, seeded or mostly seeded, depending on how much heat you prefer
1/4 cup  Flour
3 cups  Chicken Stock
2 cups  Half and Half
8 oz  Kase Meister Spring Onion Jack Cheese, grated
Salt and Ground Black Pepper to Taste

In a large soup pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Add the onions and both peppers and cook until very tender, about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle the flour over the mixture, stirring to coat the vegetables.  Add the chicken stock and stir until there are no clumps of flour.  Use an immersion blender, or a stand blender, to puree the mixture to the desired consistency.

Simmer the mixture for 10 minutes, then add the half and half and stir to combine.  When the soup comes to a low simmer, sprinkle the grated cheese into the soup and stir until melted and heated through.

Serve with a sprinkle of crushed croutons or a dollop of sour cream on top.  Makes about 6 servings.