Well, I’ve gone from having an irritating cough to a full blown spring cold.

Ugh.

As I was sitting with my lemon tea, feeling awful, it occurred to me that I had all the ingredients to make garlic soup.

This is a recipe that my late mother-in-law shared with me, many years ago.  She told me that it was an old pioneer recipe that was especially made in the late winter/early spring, when everyone was getting low on energy.  This was a time of year when people’s stores of preserved food was probably starting to get low, too, so between the long winters, lack of sunlight, lack of vitamins, and nary a fresh vegetable to be seen, people were getting worn down.  This soup would be made and apparently resulted in a big boost of health and energy.

Oh, how blessed we are to be able to get fresh fruits and vegetables, any time of year!

I don’t know about it being a boost to energy, but garlic has long been known to help fight off colds and boost the immune system.

Plus, it’s easy and tasty.  What more can you ask?

Quantities are pretty loosey-goosey, so this is more general instructions than a recipe.  You will need:

garlic cloves; about 5 per person (I used a whole head, just for myself)
butter (enough to brown the garlic)
milk (about a cup or two per person; I used 2 cups this time)
bread (1 slice per person – I used a thick slice of sourdough bread)
shredded cheese (cheddar or whatever kind you like; about 1/2 – 3/4 cup per person)
seasoning to taste (this time around, I used onion salt, pepper and a dash of paprika)

1. Peel and prep the garlic.  It can be whole, crushed, chopped, minced or whatever you wish.  I like to pass it through a garlic press.  Then scrap all the bits stuck to the press into the pot, too.  Big pieces are not a problem, here! :-D
2. Melt the butter on the bottom of a saucepan on medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook gently until transparent.
3. Add the milk and heat until scalding.  Do not boil!
4. Season as desired.
5. Place a slice of bread on the bottom of a bowl.  Top with shredded cheese.
6. Pour the hot soup over the bread and cheese. 
7. Eat while as hot as you can handle it.

You can also give the bread time to soak up some soup, then break it apart and add more shredded cheese to the top.  I had to do that, just to be able to fit all the soup into the bowl. :-D

Now that I’ve had my bowl of soup, I think I’m going to go back to bed.

The Re-Farmer