Fall is upon us and the weather is getting colder. During this time, I love making soups and stews that can warm you up and fill your belly with yummy goodness.
The recipe is easy to make that you can put it in your crock pot and its gluten free. I like to look at recipes online and try them out. Sometimes I create my own with some of the ingredients I found on the list but add my own touch to it. It really came out great and definitely will be doing this again. I am also using this as a base for my clam chowder and see how that turns out
Homemade Cheesy Potato Soup
10-12 potatoes peeled and cut into cubes
4 slices of bacon or 2 slices of pancetta +
4 tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of diced onions
1 cup of diced celery
1 cup of diced carrots
6 cups of chicken stock
8 oz cream cheese package*
2 cups of shredded cheese**
1 1/2 cups of milk***
1 teaspoons of garlic powder
2 teaspoons of italian seasoning
2 teaspoons of salt and pepper
Step 1: Peel potatoes and cut into cubes, dice onions and veggies and cut up the bacon/pancetta to small pieces
Step 2: In a large pot, fry up the bacon/pancetta and drain it on a paper towel. Saute the onions, celery and carrots in the pan using the fat of bacon or add the olive oil if you did not use the bacon or pancetta. Add the seasonings to it and stir till the onions are almost translucent.
Step 3: Add the potatoes and stir them in. Then add chicken stock. Let is simmer till the potatoes are done.
Step 4: Reserve about 2 cups of the soup without the liquid. Blend the rest with a hand held bender or potato masher. Then add the reserved soup into the pot.
Step 5: Add the cream cheese and milk. Stir constantly till the cream cheese has melted into the soup. Then add the shredded cheese and keep stirring till thickened. You may need to add more salt and pepper to taste.
Step 6: Top off the soup with cheese and bacon or a side of crackers.
* The cream cheese needs to be at room temperature or it will be lumpy in the soup. It will take a few minutes for it to dissolve.
** Shredded Cheese can be either yellow or white. I used colby cheese because I like the combination of the taste in the soup.
*** You can substitute the milk for heavy cream and use only 1 cup then see if you need the other rest if its not thick enough.
+ The bacon is an option but if you do use it then use the oils of the bacon to saute the veggies instead of the oil.
Note: If you want the soup to a little thicker then how it is then I recommend to add corn starch to it. Just add 1- 2 tablespoons of corn starch to 1/2 cup of cold water. Let is dissolve then add to the soup. You may need to add more salt and pepper for taste
Comments