Bacon and Potato Soup

I love potato soup, so when I got married and my husband told me he would never eat potato soup I was very sad. I have found a recipe he likes though. Apparently his aversion is to the creamy variety. This is a favorite at our house. Tonight I made it with ham (about 2 cups cubed) instead of bacon because that's what I had.

• 6 thick slices of bacon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups cubed potatoes
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I add this per serving so my kids will eat it)
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• salt to taste

Cook bacon until crisp in 3-qt saucepan. remove and drain well. Wipe pan thoroughly with paper towels. meanwhile, prepare vegetables. Add olive oil to saucepan (or use some of the bacon grease if you wish...I usually do just because it's already there.) Add onion, carrot, and celery as they are cut up. Saute until onion is soft but not brown, 3-4 minutes. Add garlic.


Stir in chicken broth, potatoes, and pepper; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, 10-15 minutes.


Stir in cheese, heat just until melted, do not boil. Chop bacon and add to soup. Serve immediately. Leftovers are good too.

Mushroom Soup

• 16 oz. cremini mushrooms (baby bellas)
• 3.5 oz. shitaki mushrooms
• garlic
• onion
• savory
• thyme
• black pepper
  
• 1 qt chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• balsamic vinegar

Wash and slice mushrooms. Heat 1 Tbs. Olive oil in a large pan. When the oil is hot add the shitakis and 1/3 cup chopped onion, they take a little longer to cook, so I add them while I'm slicing the creminis. Saute mushrooms on high heat, add some salt to help draw out the moisture, this will help them get nice and golden brown. Then add the garlic, about 2 cloves, or more and the other herbs. Cook about another minute. Then add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Add the cream and heat through. Just before serving add a dash of Balsamic vinegar. I thought of this after I tasted it and it was still missing something. It was the perfect touch.

Tomato Soup

Recipe from Donna










Tomato Dill Soup

1 Family Size can of Condensed Tomato Soup (28 oz.)
2 14 oz. cans tomatoes
large pinch of dill (about 1/4 cup)
1 qt half and half
sugar?

Put all ingredients into a pot and puree with a hand blender. Heat till warm. Serve with feta cheese and Senses Dressing.

Senses Dressing:

1 cup olive oil, 1 clove garlic,1/4 cup dill,juice of 1 lemon blended until smooth.

I usually heat the soup and tomatoes before I add the half and half, just because I don't want to boil the half and half. I have made it with milk, it's not as good. I've also made it with cream, I had some that had gone a little sour. It was still wonderful. I haven't made the Senses Dressing yet, but I've had it at the muffin shop!

Variation: Tomato Cilantro Soup (photo)

I ran out of dill, so I substituted cilantro. I added pepper flakes and lime juice to serve. Very tasty. The kids liked it too. (I didn't' give them any red pepper flakes though)