Lazy Saturday

Until graduation, I had worked every single Saturday for the past 2.5 years. It was great money, and great experience, but no one likes working their weekend away. Now that I'm working full time during the week, I finally get to have some time to myself on the weekend. Still, my Saturdays are usually packed full. I'm always running around--I often go home on the weekends, especially if J. has drill. And lately, if I don't go north, then my weekends have been swamped with moving.

Today I've just been lazy. We had several Scrubs reruns on our DVR, and even though it's almost 3, I'm still in my PJs! Gotta love it :)! Jordan was craving soup, so I decided to throw together his favorite. The last time I made this soup, he ate 3 bowls in one sitting! That time though, I was anxious to try out my new "boat motor." This time, I left the potatoes chunky, so the soup was MUCH heartier. Perfect for a cuddly fall day!

I got the base for this recipe from one of my favorite B-town moms. I added cheese and fresh herbs, and took out potato flakes, but the main recipe was all D. This is also another one of those recipes where I throw in whatever I have around. Use whatever spices or herbs sound good to you. I used dill today, but I would keep that to a minimum. It was good but a bit strong for this soup.

Cheesy Potato Soup

Adapted from D.S.'s Recipe

3 Idaho Potatoes, diced (I leave peels on, it's up to you really)

4 Tbsp butter

1/2 yellow onion, diced

3 medium carrots, diced

1/4 cup flour

1 pint boiling water

1/8 cup chicken bouillon (You could use 1 pint chicken stock instead of water and bouillon)

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce

1/4 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, to taste

Fresh herbs of your choice (I recommend parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme)

1 1/2 cup cheese (Cheddar usually, but smoked gouda would be good, or anything sharp and meltable)

In large pot, cover potatoes in water. Bring to boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.

Melt butter in stockpot over medium heat. Add onions and carrots, saute for 10 minutes.

Add flour to onions and butter and cook for four to five minutes, stirring until flour is absorbed.

In a small bowl, combine water and chicken bouillon. Stir until no lumps remain.

Add to onion mixture.

Add milk and cream, stirring until smooth and lightly thickened.

Add Tabasco, Worcestershire, spices, and herbs.

Reduce heat to med. low, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep milk from scalding.

Drain potatoes, then put back in pot to let them steam out a little bit before adding to soup.

Turn the heat under the soup off, but leave pan on warm burner. Add cheese a handful at a time to the soup, stirring each handful all the way in before adding the next.

Mash the potatoes a little bit to break them down, then carefully add them to the soup.

Serve!

Stay tuned and you might get a treat later this evening...