Souper Bowl Sunday – Week 4

Yesterday’s soup was Baked Potato Soup. This recipe is in a cookbook titled “Taste of Home Everyday Slow Cooker and One Dish Recipes (2008)” It’s chilly out, so it was a wonderful day for some good comfort food. And it has bacon in it – so you know it will definitely be good! I’ve made many different recipes for Baked Potato Soup, and this is by far my favorite. It’s easy to make, and it’s nice and creamy. I do change the recipe a little bit, and I’ll mention those changes at the bottom. But I wanted to provide you with the original recipe as well.

Ingredients:

• 2 large onions, chopped
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 2 cups water, divided
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 1/2 cups mashed potato flakes
• 1/2 pound sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 3/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 cup half and half cream
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 green onions, sliced (I usually use this, but didn’t have any this week)

Directions:

In a large skillet, saute onions in butter until tender. Stir in flour. Gradually stir in 1 cup water. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker.

Add the broth, potatoes, potato flakes, bacon, pepper, salt, basil, thyme and remaining water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until potatoes are tender. Stir in cream; heat through. Garnish with cheese and green onions.

My Changes:

• I’m sure I don’t need to mention this, but instead of using chicken broth I use Penzeys Chicken Soup Base.
• I use more potatoes than it calls for – I usually use about 4 medium potatoes, and I don’t peel them – I love a nice and chunky soup.
• I cook an entire pound of bacon – I add in about 3/4 pound to the soup (there is no such thing as too much bacon!) and I reserve the rest for garnish.
• I use fresh thyme. I LOVE fresh thyme and it has such a wonderful flavor to me. I definitely prefer fresh to dried and I use fresh herbs whenever possible.
• And finally – I’ll confess to using more cheese than the recipe calls for. Cheese makes everything yummy!