Cheesy Potato Soup

Sorry I was not able to get a picture of this. The family happily enjoyed this for dinner for tonight. Sometimes soup for dinner is not their favorite. One of the comments tonight was "It has a good consistency." It was all gone at the end of the meal which is a good sign too. =) It was a nice meal for a cold winter night.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C Water
7 small potatoes about 3 C chopped in small pieces
2 carrots chopped up
1/2 onion chopped up
3 celery stalks chopped up
1 T thyme
1 tsp salt
dash pepper
1 tsp parsley
2 C milk
2 T flour or Ultra gel
1 C Cheddar cheese in chunks or 1/2 lb Velveeta Cheese

Directions:

1. In a pot put in water, potatoes, onion, celery, carrots, thyme, salt, pepper, and parsley. Simmer 20 min till vegetables are softened.

2. Pour milk in Stir in flour or ultra gel. Let thicken. Stir in cheese, and let it melt. Serve! Another quick and easy meal. Yum! This would be yummy with it.

Potato Roasted Garlic Soup

This was a fun way to use the other roasted garlic I made the other day. Roasted garlic can add a nutty, rich flavor with out adding the fat. You can add a few roasted cloves to salad dressings, soup and sauces to enhance them. The roasted garlic is best used in 2 days. You can squeeze the pulp out and put it in a small glass container. Plastic containers may absorb the odor from the garlic. This is another soup that is nice for a fall evening. My family liked it. Next time they said they would like more potato chunks. It was a nice meal.

Ingredients:

1 roasted garlic bulb or you could use 2 T minced garlic
4 C chicken broth
1 T olive oil
1 onion chopped up
2 1/2 lbs potatoes (I used red potatoes & left the skins on)
1 bay leaf
1 tsp marjoram *Optional
3 C low fat buttermilk or low fat milk add 3 T Vinegar let sit 15min
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Thyme
1 tsp parsley
pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Put 1 T Oil in pot. Heat pan and add onions (garlic if you aren't using roasted garlic) cook until softened. Then add the chicken broth, roasted garlic, bay leaf, marjoram and potatoes (Peel and chop potatoes). Cook covered about 20 min or until the potatoes are soft.

2. Take out the bay leaf out. Scoop out between 1 to 2 Cups of cooked potatoes. Depending on how many chunks you want. Pour the rest of the mixture into the blender and blend till smooth.

3. Pour the soup back into the pan Add the reserved potatoes, salt, parsley, thyme, pepper and buttermilk. Heat till thoroughly warm. You can add more spices to your preference. Hope you enjoy it!

*This would be yummy if you added a can of clams. Clam Chowder =)

Vegetable Chicken Bean Soup

This is a fun fall soup for this time of year. It would work well for lunch or dinner. The neat thing about making your own soup is you know exactly what's in it, it tastes fresher, and you cut way down on the sodium. Yes! Another bonus with this soup is it's low calorie. =)

6 T Olive oil
2 Onions, chopped finely
2-3 Garlic cloves, crushed
1/2-1 red chili, deseeded and chopped very finely (optional)
2 Skinless, boneless chicken breasts
5 Celery stalks, chopped finely
2 C Carrots, grated coarsely
9 C Chicken stock (or see my * note below)
2 Bay leaves
2 tsp Dried oregano
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 14 0z Cans White Northern Beans
5 Roma tomatoes chopped in small pieces
1 Can Tomato paste
Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro to garnish
Corn or wheat tortillas to serve
Grated cheese (optional)

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Then add onions garlic, and chili cook until just soft.

2.* Instead of using chicken broth, I put 9 cups of water into a pot. Put the uncooked chicken in there to boil for about 15 minutes. Then I added 1 T salt and 1 tsp pepper.

3. Then take chicken out of the water cut up into small pieces. Put the chicken into the frying pan with garlic and onion and chili. Cook the chicken till lightly browned.

4. Add the celery, carrots, Bay leaves, oregano, and cinnamon into pot with broth. Then add chicken, garlic, and onion. Simmer for 15 minutes.

5. Then add beans, tomatoes, and tomato paste. Simmer covered for 15-20 more minutes. Take out the bay leaves. Then taste and add extra seasoning as needed.

5. Serve hot. Sprinkle with cilantro or parsley and grated cheese optional. Serve with warm tortillas or Tortilla Chips . =) Enjoy!