I’ve made a few different potato soups in the past, all of them good. But for some reason when I wandered across this recipe when browsing Pennies on a Platter I just couldn’t get it out of my mind. A few days after finding this recipe I made it for dinner and let me tell you it was Heaven-sent, in so many ways. First, of course, it was delicious. But a very close second: It was super fast and easy to put together.

The night I had this scheduled I was running a bit behind schedule getting home from work and was feeling a bit frantic. I called Brian and asked him to chop some potatoes for me, and beyond that I’d deal when I got home. Maybe our kids could eat PB&J that night since there was no way soup would be done before they needed to get to bed. Right?

Wrong! About 20 minutes after I got home and got started dinner was sitting merrily on the table. Madeline, in between painting her high chair with it and giving herself a facial with it, ate almost as much soup as Brian or I did. Rebecca, confessed hater of all things potato (including French Fries. Somehow I gave birth to a child that hates French fries. Someone do DNA testing, STAT!) took her required taste and declared that she didn’t hate it. She didn’t spit it out, she didn’t complain. I’ll call that a win.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup
printable recipe

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup flour
7 cups milk
4 large baking potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed (about 4 cups)
4 green onions, sliced, plus more for garnish
12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon pepper, plus more for seasoning

Directions:
Melt the butter in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Stir the flour with the butter mixing until smooth. Pour the milk into the pot and stir until thick, about 10 minutes. Add the potatoes and onions to the pot and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Stir in the cheese, sour cream, bacon, salt and pepper until cheese is melted and combined.

Garnish with additional bacon, sour cream and green onion if desired. Serve

Source: Pennies on a Platter

Thankfully, this soup-hate didn’t last very long. Especially once I came across this recipe in a recent Food Network magazine. It was, quite possibly, the best broccoli cheddar soup I’ve ever had (sorry, former employer).

I decided to skip the blender portion of the recipe since I a) like cooked broccoli and b) like chunky soups. We also skipped the bread bowls and just ate some French bread on the side.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup
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Ingredients:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups half-and-half
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
sourdough bread
4 cups broccoli florets (about 1 head)
1 large carrot, diced
2 1/2 cups (about 8 ounces) grated sharp white and yellow cheddar cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:
Place a large stockpot or Dutch oven on the stovetop. Melt the butter over medium heat. Add in the onions and saute until they are tender. Add the flour into the pot and whisk until mixture is golden browned. Pour in the half-and-half and whisk until smooth Stir in the chicken broth, nutmeg, salt, pepper and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer, then lower to low heat and cook for about 20 minutes, or until thickened.

Add the carrots and broccoli into the soup and simmer for 20 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add the cheese into the pot and stir until melted.  Add water until soup is desired consistancy (I didn’t add any) and serve!

Source: Food Network magazine

Ingredients:
9 medium potatoes, cut into chunks
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
4 stalks of celery, diced
1 t. salt
½ C (1 stick) butter
milk, to taste (for thickness)
pepper, to taste
sour cream and cheese for garnish, if desired

Directions:
Cut the potato into chunks, dice the celery and the onion. Place everything in a large stock pot and cover with water. Boil until the potatoes are tender, then drain the water.

Pour the contents of the pan into a blender or large food processor and puree until smooth. (I had to do this in batches). Pour the potato mix back into the pan and add in a bit of milk very gradually, stirring, until you get your desired soup thickness. Add in the butter and heat until melted in and the soup is fully heated.

Add some additional salt and pepper, to taste, garnish with sour cream and cheese, and serve.

Source: My mother in law. Original recipe source unknown.

It’s that time of year again. The leaves are changing colors, the temperatures are dropping. And the cold and flu season is upon us. Just ask my 4 month old, Madeline. Thankfully, just in time for this nasty illness season, I discovered this recipe for chicken noodle soup- the age old Mom Cure for ailments

I found this actually freezes nicely, but you wouldn’t want the noodles to be too squashy when you freeze them. The first time around the noodles were a bit more al dente than I would have prefered but after freezing and reheating they were perfect!

Ingredients:
2 split chicken breasts, bone in, skin on (I used leftovers from whole roasting chickens)
olive oil
kosher salt
ground black pepper
2 quarts chicken stock
1 C medium-diced celery
1 C medium-diced carrots
2 C wide egg noodles
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 350°. Coat the chicken with olive oil, then season generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35-40 minutes or until no longer pink in the center. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Once the chicken is cooled enough to handle, remove the bones and skin and cut up or shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces (or whatever size you desire in your soup).

In a large soup pot, simmer the chicken stock, adding the carrots, celery and noodles. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the noodles are completely cooked. Add in the chicken and parsley and simmer until fully heated. Serve.

Source: Barefoot Contessa Family Style by Ina Garten

Colored for Halloween, flavored for fall! I loved this soup (especially the kielbasa & sweet potato flavor combined). Next time around I’m going to make a few tweeks- I think I might actually do less of the leeks since they overpowered the sweet potato flavor I love so much- but overall this was a perfect fall soup. Thick and hearty!

 Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) 1 pound turkey kielbasa, chopped into medium dice
4 medium leeks, roots removed, white and light green parts roughly chopped and thoroughly cleaned of all grit (dark green parts discarded)
6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves removed
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
A couple dashes hot sauce
A pinch nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups chicken stock, divided
5 leftover sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Sour cream, low-fat or regular, for garnish (optional)

Directions:
Pour olive oil into a soup pot. Heat over medium-heat, then brown the chopped kielbasa until it is slightly browned. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside.

Add the chopped leeks, thyme and garlic, hot sauce, nutmeg, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cook for 10 minutes or until the leeks are tender.

Transfer the leek mixture to a food processor and blend with 2 cups of chicken broth and blend until smooth. Add in the sweet potatoes and more chicken broth and continue to puree, adding more broth as needed. You may need to do this in batches (I had to and my processor is huge). Transfer everything back into the stock pot, bring to a boil, then lower to simmer for a few minutes.

Transfer to bowls, top with kielbasa and sour cream.

Source: Rachel Ray

Every year when fall rolls around, Brian heads out to his family’s cabin for deer hunting. For the last several years when he’s shot one we end up cooking the venison in the same way- pan fried in olive oil, covered in saltines and egg. It’s amazing, but sometimes a girl needs a little variety in her dinner, right?

This year, I convinced Brian to let me try a few new things with the venison he gets. We’ll still make our old, delicious standby, but I had some recipe ideas that were begging to be made. The first one he’s agreed to is this venison stew.

The beauty of this recipe is that it was made in the crock pot. I love when I can throw things in a crock pot, work all day and come home to a fully cooked meal. You just can’t beat that. Thankfully, Brian loved this and is already agreeing to try some of my other recipes in the coming weeks.

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs venison steaks, cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
3 T. flour
1/4 t. kosher salt
1/4 t. ground black pepper
1 t. basil (NOTE: the seasonings are an estimation as I eyeballed it instead of measuring)
1 t. thyme
1 t. onion powder
1 t. oregano
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
2-3 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 C red wine
2 C beef broth
2-3 drops hot sauce (I used Louisiana hot sauce and was a bit heavy handed with it- I did much more than 2-3 drops and it was HOT! but really good)

Directions:

Place the venison in a gallon-sized ziplock bag and cover with flour, salt and pepper. Toss until well coated, then place in the crock pot.

Add in the veggies and the rest of the spices, then the wine and broth. Mix until evenly dispersed.

Cook on low for 8 hours or until meat is cooked through and the vegetables are tender.

Just prior to serving, mix in the hot sauce.

Source: A Laura’s Recipe Collection original

I’ve had this recipe on my blog since near-inception, however I had just copied and pasted the original recipe. I felt the recipe deserves a re-introduction on here! This soup is remarkably easy to prepare and is relatively quick. It’s the ultimate in comfort food! We felt it was a great way to welcome the autumn season.

Panera Bread’s French Onion Soup
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Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
4 medium yellow onions, sliced
2 cans (14 oz each) beef broth
3/4 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 drops Tabasco sauce
Focaccia (or other bread, for croutons)
shaved Asiago Cheese (We usually just use swiss)

Directions:

Melt the butter in a large sauce pan, then add the onions. Saute over medium heat until the onions are soft and slightly browned.

Pour in the remaining ingredients into the pot and stir. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 20 minutes, uncovered.

To make the croutons, preheat the oven to 425*.
Slice the bread into 3/4 inch slices. Butter each side of the slice, then cut into cubes.

Bake the cubes for 15 minutes or until they are browned and crispy.

Once soup has simmered and croutons are done, top with shaved cheese and serve.

Source: Original source unknown

FOR THE ONIONS:
1/4 cup butter
4 medium yellow onions, sliced

FOR THE SOUP:
2 cans (14 oz each) (Swanson) beef broth
3/4 cup (Swanson) chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 drops Tabasco sauce

FOR THE GARNISH:
Focaccia (or other bread) (for croutons)
shaved Asiago Cheese

TO PREPARE THE ONIONS:
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add sliced onions and saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring often, until onions turn brown.

TO MAKE THE SOUP:
Add remaining ingredients for the soup to the pan and stir to combine. Heat soup until it’s boiling, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.

TO MAKE THE CROUTONS:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Slice focaccia bread (or any bread you want to use) into 3/4-inch thick slices. Butter both sides of those slices, then cut the slices into bite-size cubes.

Bake the bread in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes or until crispy.

TO SERVE:
Serve the soup super hot with a handful of croutons floating on top followed by a couple tablespoons of shaved Asiago cheese.

*You can use a potato peeler to shave the Asiago cheese by dragging it over the edge of the cheese wedge.

Servings: 8

1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 large baking potatoes, peeled & cubed
1/2 cup diced prosciutto (I used bacon)
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 cup sliced button mushrooms (I left these out since we’re not mushroom fans)
8 cups chicken broth
1 stalk green onion, sliced
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream or half & half
1-2 cups shredded cooked chicken (optional)

Directions:

In a dutch oven (I used a large stock pot on the stovetop), heat over medium heat & add butter and oil.
When butter/oil is heated, add onions, garlic and prosciutto.
When prosciutto has crisped up, sprinkle in flour.
Stir and cook until the raw flour smell is gone – about 2 mins.
Add mushrooms and cook until softened.
Add chicken broth and potatoes.
Allow potatoes to cook until tender.
Add green onion and slowly stir in cheese until melted.
Add cream/half & half and stir, allowing it to warm through.
Add chicken if using or serve as it with hot toasty bread.

Source: Joelen’s Culinary Adventures