Baked Potato Soup

2 potatoes
3 tablespoons margarine
2 cups chopped white onion
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups instant mashed potato flakes
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
8 ounces bacon - cooked and crumbled
2 green onions, chopped


Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Bake potatoes for 1 hour, or until done. Set aside to cool.
Melt butter in a 3 quart saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until tender and golden brown. Stir in flour, and cook 5 minutes to make a roux. Pour in chicken stock and water. Add cornstarch and mashed potato flakes. Season with salt, pepper, basil and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove the skin from the cooled potatoes, and discard. Dice the potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes, and stir into soup, along with the half-and-half. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until thick. Spoon into bowls, and garnish with shredded cheese, bacon and chopped green onion.

I admit that when I make soup, the specific amts on the ingrediant list is more of a suggestion. And I omit at will. Like the potato flakes. I find these to be gross.....so I just added more potatos....I also used 2% milk, and it had to keep warm on the stove for a good while as practice ran 45 minutes long (such is life) this allowed the potato to cook down even more, making a thicker soup. Regardless, most of the crew here ate it. Well, 4 out of 6 and 3 of those LOVED it. Not bad for this house.

Chicken and Corn Chile

Thanks Maria!!

1 lg. onion, chopped
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken
2 cups chicken broth
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 jalapeno chile, seeded and choppped
1 3/4 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
3/4 t. salt
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
2 cans (15 oz. each) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 T. stone-ground cornmeal
shredded Monterey jack cheese

In a 5 to 6 quart slow cooker, combine onion, chicken, broth, green pepper, jalapeno, 1 1/2 t. cayenne and 1/4 t. salt. Cover and cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 6 hours.

Remove the chicken to a cutting board and allow to cool slightly. Shred the chicken and return it to the slow cooker with remaining 1/4 t. each of the cumin and cayenne, and the tomatoes, corn and beans. Gently mash some of the beans against the side of the bowl to thicken the chili. Stir in the cornmeal and the remaining 1/2 t. salt. Let sit a few minutes to soften the cornmeal. Serve sprinkled with a little of the Monterey jack cheese.

Corn Chowder

I got this recipe from my friend Jill who.....

got this from Paula Deen on Food Network. I used canned white corn, and omit the carrots, celery, and nutmeg. I can't tell you how GOOD this was!!! Paula Deen is da bomb!

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 small onion, diced
1 small carrot, finely diced
1 small celery stalk, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups white corn kernels, fresh or frozen
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups half-and-half
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt 1 stick of butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and saute for 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir to make a roux. Cook until the roux is lightly browned; set aside to cool to room temperature.
Meanwhile, combine the corn and chicken stock in another saucepan, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Pour the boiling stock with the corn (a little at a time) into the saucepan with the roux, whisking briskly so it doesn't lump. Return the skillet to the heat and bring to a boil. The mixture should become very thick.

In a small saucepan, gently heat the half-and-half; stir it into the thick corn mixture. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper, to taste. Just before serving, cut the remaining stick of butter into large chunks. Add it to enrich the soup, stirring until the butter melts.

Italian Sausage Soup

Thanks to my friend Teralyn for this one!! I've made it and taken it several places and gotten rave reveiws

1/2 lb. Mild Italian Sausage (I use Turkey Sausage)
1 lg. onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lg carrot

Brown in soup pot

Add: 6c chicken broth
3c water
1t dried basil
1 1/2 c dried sm white beans

Cook until beans are tender

Add: 1 can Italian stewed tomatoes

15 - 30 minutes before serving add 1c large pasta shells.

When doing this in the crock pot, I pre-cook the pasta shells and add them just before serving. I double this receipe for us and add more carrots. I also cheat and use canned white beans