Winter Comfort

Beer cheese soup combines a butter-and-flour roux, softened vegetables, broth, beer and Cheddar. Blend the base before adding the cheese, then melt the cheese gently in small additions. Beer remains an ingredient; this recipe does not promise an alcohol-free result.

This Tuscan-style soup uses canned cannellini beans, bacon, diced potato and kale. Blend one can of beans with one cup of broth to thicken the pot without cream, then simmer until the potato is tender. It is a research-based recipe, not a claim of regional authenticity or kitchen testing.