This is one of our most familiar weather proverbs here in Ireland. It refers to the fact that the month of March begins with cold wintery winds, only to be replaced by warmer Spring-like weather as it leaves us. If yesterday and today is anything to go by, we are in for a few cold, wet and snowy weeks ahead!
The March wind roars
like a lion in the sky,
and makes us shiver
as he passes by.
When winds are soft,
and the days are warm and clear,
just like a gentle lamb,
then spring is here.
—Author unknown
March brings turbulent weather, but also brings more daylight. Already, by 6:45am, the skies have lightened enough for a gal to ramble around the house without turning a light on. The evenings too have a grand stretch in them and there are more people in our neighbourhood out taking a walk after supper; Hibernation season has well and truly come to an end thank God.
But with all this turbulent weather, we are scrambling to make sure the kids are kept warm and well fed at school. With busy schedules and us all running around like chickens with our heads cut off, lunchbox prep in the morning can be a nightmare. So I have been trying my best to make a few large pots of soup for the kids to have in their flasks or a bowl at home as soon as they get in from school.
When we lived in America, one of the soups you could get on a regular basis, at any restaurant or café, was Broccoli Cheese. It is still one of my favourite soups and once you make I’ll bet it will be yours too.
Brocolli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 1kg Broccoli (cut up into small florets)
- 3 carrots, peeled and grated
- 500ml milk
- 500ml chicken stock
- 400g cheddar cheese, grated
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Method
Sauté onion in olive oil on medium heat for fifteen minutes until the onions have softened and have a little colour. Remove them from the pot and set aside. Add the butter to the pot then the flour and mix thoroughly until a roux/paste forms. Pour in the milk and whisk until the flour paste has mixed into the milk, lump free, then add the chicken stock.
Add the onion back to the mix, then the broccoli florets, the grated carrot and the cheese. Once the soup cooks a little (Medium heat until it starts to simmer) taste it and add salt and pepper as needed.
Serve with a few nice slices of fresh sourdough bread.
Enjoy!
