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William Butler Yeats is my favorite Irish poet. He was raised in County Sligo and always said the county was his source of inspiration. I wanted to see his grave near Drumcliffe so on a very cold winter's day we drove to that isolated area. We stopped at a local pub in Drumcliffe for a pub lunch and to warm up and had the most incredible cheese soup I have ever tasted. Again, the quality of Irish dairy products made a dish like this exceptional. The cheese was so sharp it made my mouth pucker.
County Sligo is not as isolated as it once was, and tourism has flourished now for the past decade. Musical festivals abound. Its most famous citizen was, of course, Yeats. Having suffered from a variety of illnesses for a number of years, he died at the Hôtel Idéal Séjour, in Menton, France on 28 January, 1939. He was buried after a discreet and private funeral at Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Yeats and his wife George had often discussed his death, and his wish was to be buried quickly in France with a minimum of fuss. According to George "His actual words were 'If I die bury me up there [at Roquebrune] and then in a year's time when the newspapers have forgotten me, dig me up and plant me in Sligo.'" In September 1948, Yeats's body was moved to Drumcliffe, County Sligo, on the Irish Naval Service corvette L.E. Macha. His epitaph is taken from the last lines of "Under Ben Bulben," one of his final poems:
"Cast a cold Eye
On Life, on Death.
Horseman, pass by."
Just a little literary and history lesson! An interesting tidbit is that Yeats's father moved to the US and is buried in a cemetery in Warrnesburg, NY. My sister took a picture of me at his gravesite so I would have "matching Yeats graveside photos."
Yours truly at the grave of Yeats in Sligo.
Now on to that great cheese soup recipe.
Many cheese soups start with chicken stock and are still very rich. Not this soup. It is all cheese, and sharp, sharp cheddar . That's why your mouth will pucker from the sharpness of the thick stock. This recipe is the closest I have found that duplicates that rich, delicious soup savored in the Drumcliffe pub so many years ago.
Irish Cheddar Cheese Soup
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
½ cup of flour
1 quart of whole milk
1 cup of heavy cream
1½ lbs. of extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 tsp. of salt
½ tsp. of white pepper
1 tsp. of nutmeg
1 cup of dry white wine [beer may be substituted]
Crumbled bacon, grated cheddar, fresh parsley for garnish
Directions:
In a 6-quart dutch oven, heat the butter until melted. Add garlic and stir over low heat for about 2 minutes. Do not brown garlic as it will turn bitter and ruin the dish. Add the flour and stir constantly making a roux until smooth. Again, we want a light roux so do not brown it. Add the milk and cream stirring until it comes to a low boil. Immediately stir in the cheese and spices and heat until the cheese melts stirring constantly. Add the wine and heat through. Do not boil. Garnish each bowl with the bacon, grated cheddar, and parsley. Enjoy with a nice loaf of crusty bread and a glass of white wine. Close your eyes and you too can see the grave of Mr. Yeats.
William Butler Yeats is my favorite Irish poet. He was raised in County Sligo and always said the county was his source of inspiration. I wanted to see his grave near Drumcliffe so on a very cold winter's day we drove to that isolated area. We stopped at a local pub in Drumcliffe for a pub lunch and to warm up and had the most incredible cheese soup I have ever tasted. Again, the quality of Irish dairy products made a dish like this exceptional. The cheese was so sharp it made my mouth pucker.
County Sligo is not as isolated as it once was, and tourism has flourished now for the past decade. Musical festivals abound. Its most famous citizen was, of course, Yeats. Having suffered from a variety of illnesses for a number of years, he died at the Hôtel Idéal Séjour, in Menton, France on 28 January, 1939. He was buried after a discreet and private funeral at Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. Yeats and his wife George had often discussed his death, and his wish was to be buried quickly in France with a minimum of fuss. According to George "His actual words were 'If I die bury me up there [at Roquebrune] and then in a year's time when the newspapers have forgotten me, dig me up and plant me in Sligo.'" In September 1948, Yeats's body was moved to Drumcliffe, County Sligo, on the Irish Naval Service corvette L.E. Macha. His epitaph is taken from the last lines of "Under Ben Bulben," one of his final poems:
"Cast a cold Eye
On Life, on Death.
Horseman, pass by."
Just a little literary and history lesson! An interesting tidbit is that Yeats's father moved to the US and is buried in a cemetery in Warrnesburg, NY. My sister took a picture of me at his gravesite so I would have "matching Yeats graveside photos."
Yours truly at the grave of Yeats in Sligo.
Now on to that great cheese soup recipe.
Many cheese soups start with chicken stock and are still very rich. Not this soup. It is all cheese, and sharp, sharp cheddar . That's why your mouth will pucker from the sharpness of the thick stock. This recipe is the closest I have found that duplicates that rich, delicious soup savored in the Drumcliffe pub so many years ago.
Irish Cheddar Cheese Soup
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
½ cup of flour
1 quart of whole milk
1 cup of heavy cream
1½ lbs. of extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 tsp. of salt
½ tsp. of white pepper
1 tsp. of nutmeg
1 cup of dry white wine [beer may be substituted]
Crumbled bacon, grated cheddar, fresh parsley for garnish
Directions:
In a 6-quart dutch oven, heat the butter until melted. Add garlic and stir over low heat for about 2 minutes. Do not brown garlic as it will turn bitter and ruin the dish. Add the flour and stir constantly making a roux until smooth. Again, we want a light roux so do not brown it. Add the milk and cream stirring until it comes to a low boil. Immediately stir in the cheese and spices and heat until the cheese melts stirring constantly. Add the wine and heat through. Do not boil. Garnish each bowl with the bacon, grated cheddar, and parsley. Enjoy with a nice loaf of crusty bread and a glass of white wine. Close your eyes and you too can see the grave of Mr. Yeats.
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