Creamy Garlic Loveliness!

I was watching the cooking channel late one night and “The best thing I ever ate” was on and the topic was garlic. I saw this cream of garlic soup and was like… I love garlic and I love cream soups that soup has to be amazing. This soup is really a mix between garlic and onion but the taste is AMAZING. It goes exceptionally well with some toasted French bread. It’s pretty simple to make but you do need to give it time. Cooking it as slow as possible is what makes it so amazing. If you have a hand blender it will really make life easy here.

I got this recipe from this website: http://gumbopages.com/food/soups/garlic.html, but I made some changes.

CREAM OF GARLIC SOUP

Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Cook Time: 45 Minutes

Serves: 8

Ingredients:
4 cups onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2 cups garlic, peeled and chopped roughly (I just cut each piece in half)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1.5 quarts of chick stock
1 bouquet garni (parsley stems, thyme sprigs, rosemary, and bay leaf, tied together)
2 cups stale French bread, torn into 1/2" pieces (I used whole wheat French bread so it gave it a nuttier texture).
1 cup half and half (or 1/2 cup whole milk with 1/2 cup heavy cream)

Directions:
In a large soup pot, sauté the onions and garlic in the butter and oil. Stir frequently over low to medium heat until the onions are a deep golden brown, about 30 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bouquet garni and bring to a boil. Stir in the bread cubes and simmer for 10 minutes, until the bread is soft. Remove the bouquet garni and purée the soup in a blender, carefully! Remember that hot liquids can splash up in a blender; you can use one of those hand-held blenders and purée it right in the pot if you like. Strain the soup through a medium strainer. Add the half and half, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
To Garnish (Garlic Chips): I took a few garlic cloves and sliced them thinly. I took a small frying pan and heated it up really well. I added about ¼ cup of olive oil and let it get very hot. I then fried the garlic chips giving them lots of room (do not over crowd, they will stick together). I flipped them over once, till they got a nice golden color. I topped each soup with a few pieces. Place them gently on top so they do not sink into the soup. Gives it a nice kick!