Cream of asparagus soup with blue cheese and cherries
Serves 6.
Note: "Because I'm drawn to fruit and to pungent tastes, I looked for some fruity and prominent flavors to include and settled on tart Michigan cherries and Danish blue cheese for my soup recipe," writes Scott Graden in "New Scenic Cafe: The Cookbook." "Both have strong flavors, but those flavors become much more subtle when combined in this soup. You can also make this soup using broccoli instead of asparagus."
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 1 1/2 c. chopped celery
• 1 1/2 c. chopped carrot
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• 4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) butter