magine this:

It's a cold, gray, winter day. You have been sightseeing at cold, gray ruins all day. It's getting dark. Now you are driving along a narrow lane between tall, leafless hedgerows. You are tired and hungry.

You enter a tiny village and spot the pub sign swinging in the breeze. You stop.

A half of bitter and the world looks a little brighter. Then the proprietress brings out a steaming bowl of soup and places it before you. It is as golden as the Caribbean sun. The aroma is hearty, heady and redolent of Cheddar, and the taste is satisfying, sublime.

Cheese soup -- what a good idea. You decide to spend the rest of your life right here.

"It's definitely a hardier soup," says chef Bob Morgan of the lager and cheddar soup he created after hearing a description from an English friend.

The soup Mr. Morgan serves at Weber's on Boston Street in Baltimore has a base of sturdy chicken and ham stock and is seasoned with bay, dry mustard and onions. It's a deceptively simple preparation that packs a wallop of good tastes.

Although the soup has been on the menu since Weber's opened last June, it's been especially popular this winter. "We're definitely serving more of it than we did in the summer," Mr. Morgan said.

Mr. Morgan, who is executive chef at Weber's, said he likes to cut up rye or German farm bread into 1-inch cubes and add those to the soup as he's eating it -- which would make it resemble two other winter cheese favorites, Welsh rarebit and fondue.

While the British may not do quite everything right when it comes to food, they do understand comfort, and they do have a lot of nice, distinctive cheeses. A soup created by chef Marcel Desaulniers at the Trellis restaurant in Williamsburg, Va., also is based on a description of an English dish: Trellis co-owner John Curtis' recollection of a chilled Stilton soup at Tante Claire in London.

"People do love 'em," Mr. Desaulniers says. "I've made cheese soup for years. Growing up in New England, we always had cheese soups as a sort of staple of life."

Mr. Desaulniers suspects the texture of the soups is part of their appeal -- the cheese contributes a nice, smooth consistency -- but he thinks people also go for a taste that is somewhat out of the ordinary among soups.

Soup made with cheese is "a pretty good idea," says James McNair, a California cookbook author. "It's creamy, it's rich, it's satisfying, it's delicious."

A number of cheeses lend themselves to soup-making, Mr. McNair says: "Anything that melts smoothly -- fontina, Emmentaler, cheddar, Jack."

While cheese soups are generally hearty in flavor, they're also somewhat fragile as preparations. "One thing about these cheese soups, they're not as nice when they're reheated," Mr. Desaulniers said.

*

Here is Mr. Morgan's recipe for cheddar and beer soup. If you don't want to make the chicken and ham stock, use bouillon and increase the amount of onions in the soup to 3/4 cup. (Just be sure the amount of liquid stays the same, 1 1/2 quarts.) If you're concerned about using butter, mix 1/4 cup cornstarch with enough warm water to give it the consistency of milk.

Old English lager and cheese soup

Makes 6-8 servings.

FOR THE CHICKEN AND HAM STOCK:

1 pound chicken bones

1 pound smoked ham shanks

1 1/2 quarts cold water

2/3 cup celery, medium dice

2/3 cup carrots, medium dice

1 cups onions, medium dice

2 bay leaves

2 sprigs thyme

1 clove garlic

FOR THE SOUP

1 1/4 pounds sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 cup onions, fine dice

4 ounces heavy cream

8 ounces lager beer

2 1/2 ounces butter (5 tablespoons)

2 1/2 ounces flour (5 tablespoons)

1/4 - 1/2 cup cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

FOR THE GARNISH

bacon, fried crisp and crumbled scallions, including green parts, sliced thin

Rinse the ham shanks and chicken bones in cold water. Put all ingredients in a stock pot with 1 1/2 quarts cold water. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Strain the stock; put it aside where it can be kept warm. (Note: If you make the stock ahead of time, warm it up before adding to the soup.)

In a 1 1/2 gallon pot, saute the onions in the butter. Add the flour, blending it well. Over high heat, add the warm stock and bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to simmer and add lager, dry mustard and cheese. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add a little hot soup to the cornstarch and mix to a smooth paste. Gradually add cornstarch mixture to soup until desired consistency is reached. (It should be somewhat thick.) Add the heavy cream and simmer 5 minutes more before serving. Garnish with crumbled bacon and scallions.

In this next soup, the pear garnish was added to balance the assertiveness of the Stilton, chef Marcel Desaulniers says in his newly expanded version of "The Trellis Cookbook" (Fireside/Simon & Schuster, 1992, $15 in paperback.) The chef says the soup may also be served warm -- especially if you like the assertive flavor of the cheese which will be more powerful than when the soup is chilled.

Chilled Stilton and pear soup

Makes 8 servings.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon water

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 medium leek, white part only, chopped

salt and pepper

6 cups chicken stock (homemade or canned)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 pound Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

2 small pears, unpeeled

1/2 cup half and half

6 ounces Stilton cheese, broken into 1/2 -inch pieces

Heat the vegetable oil and water in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat. When hot, add the chopped celery, onion and leek. Season with salt and pepper and saute until onions are translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the chicken stock, bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

While the stock is simmering, melt the butter in a 2 1/2 -quart saucepan over low heat. Add the flour to make a roux and cook until the roux bubbles, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir constantly to prevent browning and scorching. Strain 4 cups simmering stock into the roux. Whisk vigorously until smooth. Add to the 5-quart saucepan with the remaining stock and vegetables. Whisk until well combined. Simmer an additional 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and whisk in Monterey Jack cheese, 1 cup at a time. Strain the soup, then cool by placing in an ice-water bath and stirring frequently with a stainless steel spoon or ladle.

Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice to 4 cups water. Core the unpeeled pears, cut them into medium dice and place in the water.

Pour the diced pears into a colander, rinse under cold running water, drain well and add to the soup with the half and half and the Stilton. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.

Note: If pears are unavailable, substitute a good sweet apple.

Chef Desaulniers says Monterey Jack cheese gives soup a nice consistency. This next recipe, which is totally different from the Stilton soup, also uses Monterey Jack in the base.

Fennel, red pepper and country ham soup

Makes 8 servings.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon water

2 stalks celery, sliced thin

1 medium onion, sliced thin

1 small fennel bulb, cored and cut into long thin strips

salt and pepper

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into long thin strips

6 cups chicken stock (homemade or low-sodium prepared variety)

7 tablespoons unsalted butter

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 pound Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1/4 pound country ham, cut into long thin strips

Heat the vegetable oil and water in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat. When hot, add the celery, onion and fennel. Season the vegetables very lightly with salt and pepper and saute for 5 minutes. Add the red pepper and saute for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and hold at room temperature.

Heat the chicken stock to boiling in a 2 1/2 -quart saucepan.

In a separate 2 1/2 quart saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the flour to make a roux. Cook until the roux bubbles, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir constantly to prevent browning and scorching. Add the boiling stock and whisk vigorously until smooth. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and whisk in the grated cheese, 1 cup at a time. Add the sauteed vegetables and country ham. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately. (If desired, you may hold the soup in a double boiler for up to one hour before serving.)

James McNair includes several soups in "James NcNair's Cheese Cookbook" (1989 Chronicle Books, $10.95 paper). This one uses imported Swiss Emmentaler, but he notes any flavorful Swiss-style cheese, such as Norwegian Jarlsberg will do.

Swiss cheese and potato soup

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

4 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and diced

4 tablespoons butter

4 leeks, including most of the green tops, chopped

1 cup dry white wine

6 cups chicken stock, homemade or low-sodium canned chicken broth

1 1/2 cups (about 4 1/2 ounces) shredded Emmentaler cheese

salt (optional)

freshly ground white pepper

freshly grated nutmeg

1 tablespoon chopped chives or dill, or sprigs of either herb, for garnish

Place the potatoes in a saucepan with water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes; drain and reserve.

Heat the butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat and saute the leeks until tender but not browned. Add wine and cook for 2 minutes; add reserved potatoes and chicken stock and cook until potatoes are soft. Working in batches, transfer mixture to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.

Return soup to pot over low to medium heat. Add cheese and stir with a long-handled wooden spoon until cheese melts and is well-blended; do not allow to boil. Season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Garnish with chives or dill.

Another hearty soup that uses Cheddar cheese comes from Sargento, a Plymouth, Wis., firm that sells packaged cheese in convenience forms. Sargento suggests serving the soup with salad and crusty bread or muffins for a warming winter meal.

Cheddar chowder

Makes 8 servings.

2 cups boiling water

2 cups cauliflower florets

1 cup diced potatoes

1/2 cup sliced carrots

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1/4 cup flour

2 cups milk

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mild or sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup cubed cooked ham, optional

In saucepan, combine water, vegetables, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Do not drain. In large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, then milk and heat to boiling. Continue simmering, stirring constantly, until thickened. Add cheddar cheese; stir until melted. Add undrained vegetables and ham, if used. Heat through, do not boil.