I have one too, thick, chunky and cheesy, but no beer. From Midwest living. Midwest Ham and Cheese Chowder 2 cups water 2 cups chopped potatoes 1/2 cup chopped carrots 1/2 cup chopped celery 1/4 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup butter or margarine 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 2 cups milk 2-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese or 10 ounces American cheese, torn 1 15-ounce can cream-style corn 2 cups cubed cooked ham Directions 1. In a large saucepan or pot, combine water, potatoes, carrots, celery, and onion. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. 2. For cheese sauce: In a medium saucepan, melt butter or margarine. Stir in flour and pepper. Add milk all at once. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. 3. Add cheese to sauce and cook and stir until melted. Add cheese sauce to vegetable mixture. Stir in corn and ham. Heat through, but don't boil. Ladle into soup bowls and top with additional pepper, if you like. Makes 6 main-dish servings. Annie

- Vegetables tend to get a little mushy, especially potatoes, but I don't find it a problem for myself. I've made tons of vegetable soup and stew containing potatoes and have frozen it. - Cream/dairy often tends to separate or curdle. Constantly stirring during reheating can help prevent this. Gravy (in stew) tends to separate when thawed and won't be as thick, but the flavor is fine. - Barley, beans, and pasta also can get a little mushy. I tend to under-cook these ingredients for freezer storage. - I add spices just before I freeze the soup, and perhaps additional seasonings during reheating. - Garlic tends to get bitter when frozen for longer than 3 months. Onions and paprika can change flavor during freezing. Peppers can also alter in flavor and texture. Celery and celery seed can get stronger. - Salt can loose it's savor, so I add salt when reheating. - I tend to make a concentrated form of the soup and add water during reheating. This helps to save on freezer space. - I reheat cream soups over boiling water in a double boiler to help prevent separating. - Be safe when cooling the soup. You need to quick-cool a pot of soup in an ice and water bath to quickly bring the temperature down. After it's cool, it's safe to store in the refrigerator or freezer. Stir it occasionally during chilling so the inside cools as well as the contents of the pot closest to the outside of the pot. - DO NOT cool large pots of soup/stew/chili in the refrigerator. Large quantities of hot food can bring the temperature below a safe 40°F. in the refrigerator. The inner soup in a large pot may take too long to come to food safe temperature and bacteria can grow. - Do not place a lot of containers of hot soup into the freezer at one time - quick chill the soup first in the ice/water bath. Place the containers in different areas of the freezer so you don't reduce the freezer temperature below 0°F while it freezes - especially if freezing in large containers, like quarts or larger. - I like to cool the soup, then portion it into single serving sizes (1/2-cup or 1-cup) plastic containers. Be sure to leave head-space for expansion during freezing. When solid, pop the soup out of the containers and stack the blocks of soup and vacuum seal the soup in FoodSaver bags. Take out the number I need and reseal the bags. - Frozen soup has a 3-6-month freezer life. Longer if you vacuum seal it. - Reheat all soup to a rolling boil, or at least 165°F. -Grainlady

Here are my contributions: PRESSURE COOKER PORK IN BEER AND ONIONS 2 tsp. finely minced garlic 1 Tblsp. soy sauce 2 Tblsp. brown sugar, packed 1/4 tsp. ground allspice 1/4 tsp. cayenne 1/2 tsp. Salt, or to taste 4 to 4-1/2 lb. Picnic shoulder, rind removed (trimmed weight) 2-1/2 cups beer 2 bay leaves 6 cups tightly packed, sliced onions 2 Tblsp. cornstarch dissolved in 3 Tblsp. water In a small bowl, make a paste by mashing together the garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar, allspice, cayenne, and salt. Rub into the picnic shoulder. Pour the beer into the pressure cooker and add the bay leaves. Set the rack in place. Place half the onions on the rack and set the pork on top. Spread the remaining onions over the pork. Lock the lid in place and over high heat and bring to high pressure. Adjust the heat to maintain high pressure and cook for 55 minutes. Let the pressure drop naturally or use the quick-release method. Remove the lid, tilting away from you, to allow any excess steam to escape. Check the pork for doneness with a meat thermometer inserted into the center. It should register 170ð F. If not, lock the lid back in place, and return the pork to high pressure for a few more minutes. Remove pork to a platter and set aside in a warm place. Remove the rack. If there is more than 2 cups of sauce, boil vigorously over high heat to reduce. Whisk in just enough of the cornstarch solution to thicken the gravy while cooking at a low boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the bay leaves, carve the pork, and pour over the gravy. Serves 4 to 6. PRESSURE COOKER BEEF CARBONNADE 2 Tblsp. oil 1 large chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes 1 pkg. Lipton's Onion Soup (dry mix) (most of the time I omit this and just chop a large onion & throw it in) 1 can favorite beer 1 beer can of water 1/2 tsp. thyme 2 Tblsp. flour 1 (8 oz.) carton sour cream Put 2 Tblsp. oil into a very hot pressure cooker pot. Braise the beef cubes on all sides until well browned. Add the dry onion soup mix, beer, water and thyme. Stir once to distribute ingredients evenly in pot. Place lid on pressure cooker tightly. Put pressure regulator weight in place. Leave heat under cooker on high until the weight begins to jiggle. Lower heat immediately to a level that keeps the weight just barely moving. Time from this point on for 20�"25 minutes (depending on the grade of meat). Remove pot from heat and cool. Mix 2 Tblsp. flour into an 8 oz. container of sour cream. Stir some of the hot liquid from the pot into the sour cream mixture, then pour the mixture into the pot and stir to blend. Simmer for 5 minutes on a low heat. Serve over cooked, drained egg noodles or bowtie pasta with your favorite vegetables on the side.

This one is SOOOOOO good! Have been making it for several years, now, it is from the Byerly's gourmet food stores/restaurants here in the Minneapolis area. They make awesome stuff! Beer Cheese Soup Topped with popcorn or other garnishes. INGREDIENTS  1/2 cup minced onion  1/2 cup margarine or butter  2/3 cup flour  1 teaspoon dry mustard  1 teaspoon paprika  1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper  1 teaspoon salt  1 (10 1/2 ounce) can chicken broth  4 cups milk  1 (12 ounce) can beer  3 cups finely shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, (12 ounces) DIRECTIONS In large kettle, cook onion in margarine until soft. Blend in flour and seasonings; gradually stir in broth, milk and beer. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil; boil and stir until thickened. Add cheese, stirring and heating until smooth. To Serve: Ladle into soup cups or bowls. Garnish with popcorn, croutons, minced parsley, chives, minced green onion or crumbled crisp bacon. Amount: 6-8 servings Linda