I'm making potato soup. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[Rhiannon12866]

I used to make this, all the time, for my Dad. I got the recipe from my grandmother's friend, who won some sort of award for it from "Good Housekeeping" in 1948. I've since lost it, but am trying to do it from memory. My Dad loved it, so I made it for him, often, especially when he came home from the hospital from chemo, since he needed to eat.:shrug:

It's really simple. Here's what I did.

Two large onions, minced really small.
A dozen pieces of bacon, also minced small.
6 large potatoes, peeled, boiled and mashed.
Salt and pepper.

I cut up the bacon in tiny pieces, and fried it in my electric frying pan, until it was very crisp. I put the bacon in the freezer, so it was easier to slice. Then I removed the bacon from the bacon grease, and fried the minced onion down to nothing. My Dad did not like onion. You can reduce the bacon grease, but I was looking for additional fat content for my Dad. And I boil and mash the potatoes, adding salt to the water and fresh ground pepper to the mashed potatoes. I save the water and add the bacon bits back to the onion, cooked in bacon fat, the mashed potato, with pepper, and the potato water. I often add a bit more water. Cook until it is reduced to desired consistency. My Dad always thought it was too thick, so I'd thin it with more water. Enjoy.:shrug:

[NMDemDist2]

1. that sounds yummy but

no cream or milk at all? interesting

i'll be interested to hear how it turns out :)

hope your Dad enjoys (and you too!)

[Rhiannon12866]

2. No, no cream or milk

I made it for my friend, who was ill, and emphasized that she should just add a little water, if she wanted it thinner. This was not my best batch, but it's been awhile. I have since lost my Dad, but I made this for him, since this was one thing he'd eat. And I tried to make it fairly fattening, since my Dad had cancer, and lost weight. I should lose the bacon fat. *sigh* But thanks for the encouragement. This is really good, especially since it contains so few ingredients. Apparently, it was originally made by hunters, over a campfire. But my grandmother's friend made it in her kitchen, and so do I.:-)

[NMDemDist2]

3. oh! sorry about your Dad, mine passed away last November

also from cancer. It's hard...

[Rhiannon12866]

7. Thank you. And I'm sorry. I know how hard it is.

My Dad also had cancer, and died in November, though it was several years ago. Sometimes I'm okay and sometimes it just hits me all over again, like now. My father had throat cancer, so it was hard for him to eat, and the chemo made it even tougher, but he liked this, so I made it a lot. I tried to make it as calorie-laden as possible, but I guess I had better stop doing that.;(

[Lisa0825]

4. I made a similar recipe before....

The potato itself makes the soup feel creamy, so no cream or milk is really needed.

For my recipe, I topped it with a dollop of sour cream, some cheddar cheese, and chopped green onions, and called it Baked Potato Soup.

[Rhiannon12866]

8. What a great idea! Thanks! I just wish I had thought of this!

Regular sour cream contains a lot of calories and my Dad loved cheese! He wouldn't have gone for the scallions, but my roommate loves them, so I'll give this a try!:-)

[Eloriel]

13. Baked Potato Soup Recipe

from Southern Living's "Our Best One-Dish Meals" 1995 (everything I've tried from this is great -- but it's NOT exactly a diet book :evilgrin: )




4 large baking potatoes (bake until done, let cool)
2/3 C butter or margarine
2/3 C sll-purpose flour
6 C milk
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1-1/2 C (6 oz.) shredded Chedar, divided
12 slces bacon, cooked, crumbled, divided
4 green onions, chopped and divided
1 8-0z carton sour cream

Scoop out pupl and reserve. Discard shells.

Melt but6ter in Dutch over over low hea; add flower, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minutes. Gradually add milk; cook over med. heat, stirring constantly, until thickened nd bubbly.

Stir i potato, salt and pepper, 1 C chese, 1/2 C bacon, and 2 T green onions; cook until heated (do not boil). Stir in sour cream; cook just until heated 9do not boil). Serve with remaining cheese, bacon, and green onions. Yield: 2-1/2 quarts.


Notes: Aside from the potatoes and the flour/milk soup base plus sour cream, I don't measure the ingredients. I use Hormel real Bacon Bits instead of frying all that bacon. It's a pretty forgiving recipe. Also, I rather like the potato in some chunks -- others may not. I usually skip the green onions ('cause I rarely have them on hand) and skip garnishing the soup as well for everyday meals and it's perfectly wonderful soup nonetheless.
I really LOVE this soup, and it's the kind of thing that's good in the summertime now and then and wonderful in the fall/winter as well.

[Stinky The Clown]

5. This really looks like one of those recipes that can be used as is or

as the basis for "more". Thanks for sharing!

As I read it, a few ideas came to mind .......

Use stock in place of the water. I'm thinking canned stock. Veggie or chicken would be good. The idea of using beef stock doesn't appeal to me, personally, for this, but it could work, too.

Lisa had some great ideas with the cheese and the green onions.

The green onions could also be leeks. Very similar to a classic vichyssoise.

Garlic .... lots of it, chopped very fine or grated on a microplane so it just sorta melts into the soup.

Butter instead of the bacon and bacon grease at the start. Sweat the onions and let them caramelize as you suggest and follow the same recipe. Very different taste.

I enjoy tweaking recipes!

Thanks for this.

[Rhiannon12866]

9. Thanks for the ideas! I especially like the idea of using stock, instead

Of water. I now always use chicken stock when making rice. I got that idea when my vet had me cook for my dogs, when they needed to be on a bland diet, chicken and rice. I think I'd go for veggie stock, for the soup, rather than chicken, since I wouldn't want to change the taste too much.:-)

Actually, when I first started making this, I think I did start out by cooking the onions in butter, but I switched to the bacon grease when I was making it for my Dad. I have, unfortunately, lost the original recipe, so I can't check it, unless I can get ahold of a copy of "Good Housekeeping," from 1948, LOL!:D

edited for punctuation

[WritersBlock]

6. Sounds a lot like the way my Mom used to make it.

She didn't mash up the potatoes, though - they still had some good-sized chunks in them.

If she added milk, I don't think she added very much.

It sure was good soup.

I'm sorry to hear about your Dad.

[Rhiannon12866]

10. I didn't think that mashing the potatoes would work,

But it always seems to come together after simmering it for awhile. I like it pretty thick, so cook it way down, but my Dad used to complain that he could eat it with a fork, so I added water before heating it up for him.:-)

And thanks for the kind words.O8)

[eleny]

11. I'm going to make this tonight

After reading this thread, I see how you personalized the recipe to make it your very own.

I got some leeks recently because they looked so good. So, I'll use them instead of the regular onion. I'll also try broth for the liquid. And at the end I might reserve some potato pieces and blend the rest. Potato soup is so good and homemade is the best!

I'll post to let you know how it turned out.

[eleny]

12. I made the soup today

I used the leeks because I had them on hand. Also added some garlic and the chicken stock. And I did add some milk - a package of powdered milk. It came out great. I'm delighted as it hit the spot!

The last thing was to grind some pepper onto my bowl of soup. I used something called Hunter's Blend Pepper that I got from my local coffee roaster shop. It's a blend of Malibar, white, green, and pink peppercorns with chili flakes, whole cloves, coriander seed, fennel, and sesame seed. It was good with the touch of clove that added more fragrance than flavor.

Thanks for starting this thread!

[Rhiannon12866]

16. You're welcome, after all this time, LOL!

I just made this, again, and since my thread hadn't been archived, thought that this recipe was worth a kick. This is especially good for the winter, but has been a hit with everyone I've made it for.:-)

Rhiannon

[mandyky]

14. Just got back from grocery shopping and bought potatoes

because I saw this thread the other day.

What I'll probably do is peel and dice the potatoes, cook and drain
Add pureed garlic, celery, onions and grated carrots
Cook in the crockpot with milk covering ingredients until I can smell it cooking
Add shredded cheddar and / or sour cream when almost done.
May also add some chopped broccolli with the other veggies.

[eleny]

15. Your version sounds delicious

[housewolf]

17. Yet another prize recipe today!

Thanks so much, this sounds wonderful. I know your dad appreceiated all that you did to help him through his illness - cancer of the throat is no fun. When I had it, my mom made me "beef tea" from beef bones that she roasted somehow. There was so little that I could eat, and zippo-appetite to boot, don't know what I would have done without her. Later I returned the favor.

Thanks for sharing your soup and a little bit of its history and meaning to you.

[SW FL Dem]

18. Agreed

I have some leftover mashed potatoes and ham from Christmas. I'm thinking that potato soup could be a good way to use up some of my leftovers.

[Rhiannon12866]

20. Absolutely! I have a lot of ham leftover, myself, so I should follow your

suggestion! You'll just need a little minced onion, cooked well, and salt and pepper. This is so simple that it translates well. This sounds great!:D

[Rhiannon12866]

19. Thank you. I posted this recipe because this soup is always a hit

with everyone. I just had to be sure to cook the onions down to nothing, for my Dad, and I prefer it that way. Cooking in soup makes everything plump up, so I also cook the bacon incredibly crisp.:-)

And I'm so sorry to hear hat you were sick, as well. Yikes! I went through this for my Dad, and made a real effort to make whatever he would eat, then faced surgery, myself, three in seven years, so I know a little about what this is like. My third surgery, which worked for me, was only an overnight stay, and they brought me soup and a sandwich, for dinner, since that was what I'd requested. And it was the best choice possible, since the soup that they brought me was potato.:D

I really hope that you try this and enjoy it as much as I have. The last time I made it, it was for my friend who eats much more meat than I do, so I used more bacon, and found that this really worked well. I think that this is one of those recipes that it's impossible to screw up, as long as you use the main ingredients.:shrug:

Rhiannon:hi:

[SW FL Dem]

21. It's smelling pretty good in here

I carmelized an onion in butter, added my leftover mashed potatoes and some chicken broth. I baked two more potatoes and added the chunks to the mixture. I have some precooked bacon, cheddar cheese and chives to chop up and put on top of the soup when it is done. I'm serving it with ham sandwiches made with some really awesome artisan bread (garlic and onion) I found at Costco. Yum!!

[noamnety]

22. leftover mashed potatoes rant

I have none of those because my sister-in-law announced she would bring the mashed potatoes to Christmas dinner. And then showed up with freaking instant potatoes. x(


If you don't want to make potatoes, that's fine, but don't volunteer to bring them to a holiday dinner then, thereby denying everyone else access to real potatoes - including my daughter who is back from college and was specifically complaining about the instant potatoes in the dining hall.

[NMDemDist2]

23. i was in charge of potatos at Miz B's

they came out really good! it's a good thing i didn't listen to her about amounts or we'da run out

we still only had about a cup of leftovers and they were gone on Monday

[Rhiannon12866]

24. You have got to be kidding! How rude!

It's not as if you gave to be a Culinary Institute chef to make mashed potatoes! I mashed them for my mother, years ago, long before I ever took an interest in cooking, and I just did what I saw her do. Some butter, a splash of milk, salt and pepper. They're my favorite part of the meal. Anyway, I'd be steamed, as well. But there's more than one way to screw up mashed potatoes. My friend complained that his sister ran hers through the blender, said her family preferred them that way, so he was out of luck at holiday dinners, as well. I prefer mine a little rustic, as he does. And I'm sorry for your daughter, since I remember so well, coming home from school, looking forward to real food...:-(

[Rhiannon12866]

25. This sounds excellent! I have leftover mashed potatoes, as well, so may

try something like this. The soup toppers sound really good. And we have an excellent bread bakery, even in my small town. My Christmas dinner companion is currently in the hospital (nothing to do with the dinner, LOL!), had surgery today, so I'm going to be looking for something tempting to make him when he comes home. BTW, I just bought more potatoes, today, and got Yukon Gold. This is a nice change from the ordinary russets. I've also tried the purple ones, and really liked them, but I think I'll have to work up to this, with my friend.:-)

[amerikat]

26. What I do with leftover mashed potatos.

Form them into patties and suate them in butter and oil until crispy. I always make xtra mashed just so that I have some to saute. I sometimes add scallions or leeks before frying them up. Just delicious.

[NMDemDist2]

27. mmmmmmm potato pancakes

i love those

also i use them for shepard's (cottage) pie (Mr Ketchup's favorite)

[amerikat]

28. for me it's the crispy outside contrasted to the creamy inside.(nt)

[DemExpat]

29. Hey, I just now finished making a pot of potato soup for New Year's Eve.

About 4 liter Chicken bouillion (jar, can, cubes, any combination)
4 onions, chopped
4 stalks of celery, chopped
Lots of potatoes (I used about 12), peeled and chopped.

Bring broth and veggies to a boil and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Then I blended this mixture while I added about 6 T flour to 4 cups of half and half, cream, or mixture of these high fat creams with milk or evaporated milk. I brought the soup back to a simmer and added the cream and flour, stirring, until it thickened up nice, then added about 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper.

After sitting the night it will be delicious tomorrow evening!

This soup always comes out good - blended or not. I had some leftover cream to use up from Christmas, so used that, but I have used powdered skim milk before and it was great too.


:bounce:

DemEx

[Rhiannon12866]

30. This sounds really good! Thanks! :D

Hope you're enjoying it, as I type this! Have a great New Year's Eve and a Happy New Year!:hi: