FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING

I love soup.  In the fall and winter months, I think I could eat it every day.  Yesterday I made this creamy potato soup for dinner, and it was oh-so yummy!  (Winter Warmer beer was the perfect combo.)  I've never made soup before, and I have to say - I was quite proud of myself.  I'm not usually the cook in our little family, but I am most definitely going to start trying more often.  I got this recipe from my mother-in-law over the weekend, and now I am sharing it with you!

>> POTATO SOUP <<

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes

1/3 cup diced celery

1/3 cup finely chopped onions

3/4 cup diced cooked ham (I used bacon)

3 1/4 cups water

2 Tbsp chicken bouillon granules (I used 4 cubes)

1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

1 tsp ground black pepper (I used 3/4 tsp)

5 Tbsp butter

5 Tbsp all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

Directions:

1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham (I left out the ham) and water in a stockpot.  Bring to boil.  Then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 - 15 minutes.  Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt, and pepper.

2. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over low-medium heat.  Whisk in flour with a fork, stirring constantly until thick - about 1 minute.  Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form, until all of the milk has been added.  Continue stirring over low-medium heat until thick - about 4 to 5 minutes.

3. Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through.  Serve immediately.

*Just a few notes...

Instead of ham - I cooked about 4 to 5 strips of bacon, ripped them into little pieces, and added the bacon when I was adding the milk mixture (step #3). 

Also, my timing was a bit off on having the milk mixture ready, so the potatoes had been in the stock pot for almost 20 minutes by the time I added the mixture and finished the soup.  I was worried they would be a bit mushy, but they were really tender and good!

Lastly, when all was said and done I felt like the soup was a bit thick (probably because I cooked it for longer than I was supposed to), so I added about 1/2 cup more water, which made it more the consistency I wanted.  One of the things I like about this recipe is that you an add more or less of something, and it still tastes great!  It's sort of hard to mess up (which is good for me!).