Easy Cheesy Vegetable Soup

If you want your family to eat more vegetables (willingly!) and enjoy good, hearty soups in the fall and winter, this one is for you. It's my own concoction, adapted from Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner. This recipe is suitable for a crockpot or stove-top.

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower, cored & broadly chunked
3 medium carrots, peeled & chunked
3 stalks of celery, washed & chunked
4 c. chicken broth (water + bouillon cubes work well)
1 t. thyme, crushed
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8 oz. shredded cheese
2 c. milk, divided
1 jar Ragu Double Cheese pasta sauce

Put the first set of ingredients in a stock pot (6 qt) or large crockpot and cover. If using crockpot, cook on low for at least 8 hours or high for 4 hours. If using stovetop method, allow the ingredients to boil and then reduce to low until the vegetables are soft and easily broken with a rubber spatula or knife.

Once the vegetables are soft enough (as indicated above), turn the heat to low and use a stick blender to puree the contents of the pot. If you don't have a stick blender, strain the vegetables and a small amount of the broth to a blender and whirl on purée until smooth.

Once the contents are smooth and there are no more chunks and/or strings from the celery chunks, add cheese (anything except mozarella or swiss) to the pot, stirring to melt. Combine 1 cup of milk and 1 jar of Ragu Double Cheese Pasta Sauce in as well. The pasta sauce will be thick and you'll use another cup of milk in the jar, swishing it around to get the rest of it out and in the pot of soup. Combine well.

Season with salt & pepper to taste and serve up with salad and crusty bread. It's a hearty, filling soup that your family will rave about! :)

Bon appetite!

~Sue