This Creamy Vegan Cheese Soup is rich, creamy, and full of flavor…dinner doesn’t get much cozier than this vegan beer cheese soup! You’d never guess this deliciously indulgent soup was dairy-free.
Ever since I first learned that there is such a thing as soup made of beer and cheese, I’ve wanted to veganize it.
So here am I, making this in the summer haha!
You can’t go wrong with a big bowl of thick, creamy cheesy soup with crunchy croutons. I can have that any day!
Traditional beer cheese soup is just what it sounds like! A thick, creamy soup made with a base of beer that has cheese (usually cheddar) melted in it. It’s usually also got some robust seasonings like mustard, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce in there, and some versions include veggies.
For the cheese, I am using nutritional yeast flakes, as it gives the whole thing a really cheesy flavor.
If you read this blog regularly, you probably know of my love for cashews and that they blend up super creamy. (You can even make dairy-free cream out of cashews!). So that part was easy.
But the veggies part was kind of inspired. Like I mentioned above, some versions of beer cheese soup include veggies as well as beer and cheese. I decided to include them in mine, but in double the amount, you’d normally find in beer cheese soup. Why not add some veggies that normally would go in a soul – they add an amazing flavor, and make things healthier! it’s going to get blended anyway!
Other Tips For This Cheesy Soup:
- Can this soup be made gluten-free? I think your best bet would be to skip the flour and thicken the soup towards the end of cooking with some arrowroot or a slurry made from cornstarch and cold water. Add a bit a time until it gets as thick as you like it.
- Where can I find vegan Worcestershire sauce? Most health food stores carry vegan brands — look for Annie’s or Edward & Sons. Whole Foods brand is also vegan. If you can’t find it in stores, try online.
- Why does this recipe include yeast? That’s not the same type of yeast you’d use to bake bread. Nutritional yeast is a type of deactivated yeast that adds a cheesy, savory flavor to dishes. You can read up on the details here. Look for nutritional yeast in the natural foods section of your supermarket, or buy it online.
- What type of beer should I use for this soup? Brown ale works best, but other varieties of medium to dark beer will work as well.
- Not all beer is vegan. Check with Barnivore to ensure the variety you choose is.
- Leftovers of this soup will keep for about 3 days in a sealed container in the fridge.
SHOP FOR EQUIPMENT FOR THIS RECIPE:
Don’t have the needed equipment to make this recipe? Don’t worry, I got you covered!
I have linked you below with all the equipment you may need for this recipe, so that will save you the time to look for them!1. Sauce Pan
2. Frying Pan
3. Chopping Board
4.Blender
Shall we give this soup a go?
Do let me know how you found this Creamy Vegan Cheese Soup if you do try it though! And if there was anything you tried or something that worked better…Do drop me a comment below, or you can find me/message me directly on Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, or Facebook! I love seeing what my lovely readers think of my recipes!
Also, I would really appreciate it if you check out my very first E-Book, it’s a 70-page book, full of beautiful, easy, and delicious vegan recipes! Click HERE to find out more!
Creamy Vegan Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium leeks white and pale green parts only, chopped
- 1 1/2 cups diced carrots about 3 medium carrots
- 1 1/2 cups diced celery about 3 medium celery stalks
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1/4 cup/34g all-purpose flour
- 1 12 ounces/350ml bottle brown ale
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh
- 2 cups/475g vegetable broth divided
- 1 cup raw/150g of cashews soaked in water 4-8 hours, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup/30g nutritional yeast flakes
- 2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon vinegar-based hot sauce such as Tobasco or Crystal
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- croutons to serve optional
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large pot with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and place it over medium heat.
- Give the oil a minute to heat up, and then add the leeks, carrots, and celery.
- Cook the veggies, stirring frequently until they begin to soften up, about 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook it for about 1 minute, until very fragrant.
- Sprinkle the flour into the pot. Stir it well to form a paste that coats the veggies. Continue stirring and cooking the mixture for about 2 minutes.
- Stir the beer and thyme into the pot. Raise the heat and bring the beer to a simmer.
- Cook the beer and veggies at a low simmer for about 5 minutes, until the liquid reduces by about half, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom of the pot with a spoon to prevent the veggies and to stick
- Stir in 1/2 of the broth. Raise the heat and bring the liquid back up to a simmer.
- Allow the mixture to simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the veggies are soft.
- While the soup simmers, prepare the croutons.
- When the soup has finished simmering remove the pot from the heat.
- Place the cashews into the bowl of a food processor with 1/4 cup of the remaining vegetable broth.
- Blend the cashews to a smooth paste, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, and drizzling in additional broth as needed.
- Ladle all the veggies from the pot into the food processor bowl, and then blend them with the cashew mixture until smooth.
- Add the cashew-veggie mixture to the pot, along with any remaining vegetable broth. You can also thin the soup with extra broth or water if you'd like.
- Stir in the nutritional yeast, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, and mustard.
- Place the pot back over medium heat and bring it back up to a simmer while stirring.
- Once it gets to a simmer, remove the pot from the heat.
- Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste. Be generous with the salt — it will help make the soup taste cheesy.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and top with chives and croutons. Serve.
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