Recipe: Easy-Cheesy Potato Soup
You all KNOW I love making soup, right? Have I mentioned that once or a dozen times? I make it every week starting in September and don’t stop until late spring. Honestly, I’d make it more often, if it were only me and Jon, especially in these frigid temperatures. Really, what is better than hot soup on a freezing cold day? Nothing. The answer to that is NOTHING.
My kids like some soups, but not all soups. Especially not ones with chunky vegetables.
And that’s where this lovely soup enters the picture.
It’s originally a Taste of Home recipe, but I switched it up enough to make it my own.
The whole thing takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. This recipe makes about 5 servings. But I’d consider making a little extra so you can eat the leftovers for lunch. Every day.
Ingredients:
About 2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1-2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
About 28 oz chicken broth (either two 14 oz cans or you can use one of those 32 oz boxes–it’s hard to mess this soup up)
Salt and pepper to taste (a few shakes of each)
12 oz evaporated milk (or you can use half and half or whole milk if that’s what you have on hand)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (If fat content bothers you, switch to low fat or fat free varieties of the milk and cheese)
A few strips of bacon, cooked to a crisp and crumbled (If fat content bothers you, probably best to skip this. But you won’t want to.)
Directions:
In a large saucepan, combine the potatoes, onion, celery, broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15-18 minutes until vegetables are tender. (Sometimes I like to start my soups with a little olive oil and cook the onion and celery a few minutes before adding the broth and potatoes. You can do it that way, too) (Isn’t this soup so kind and forgiving?)
Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until almost completely smooth. Leave a few chunks to make it interesting. If you don’t have an immersion blender, carefully ladle the soup into a normal blender and pulse a few times. Work in batches, if necessary. Hold back a few chunky veggies to throw back in there. If you don’t have a normal blender, then go to the store and buy one. Blenders are a necessity of life.
Once it’s blended to your liking, stir in the milk and the cheddar cheese. Continue stirring over medium heat until heated through and cheese is melted.
Ladle into bowls and top with crumbled bacon.
When the kids ask, “What’s this?”
Say, “It’s kinda like a cheesy, bacon french fry.”
Kinda.
Are you in a mood for soup this week? Here are a few of my favorites:
My wife made potato soup Monday night. I love potato soup and with bacon too. Another favorite of mine is chicken vegetable. Yours looks really good.
Yumm Yumm Yumm!! I had to add an M to Yum cause this just sounds beyond Yum! I dont have the stuff to make this today, but you’ve inspired me to use the diced ham I have in the freezer, and the bag of potatoes, and half an onion, and celery, and tex-mex cheese, and chicken broth that I have in my fridge……YUMM!
By the way, your White Chicken Chili in probably my favroite soup I’ve ever made. Ever. It is amazing!
I’m totally saving this post, and I’m going to try every recipe 🙂