A Recipe to Stay in for: Potato soup

What’s better than hot chocolate on a snowy day after shoveling?  How about making some hot, creamy potato soup to warm you from the inside out.

Made fresh and fast, this is a wonderful delicacy for any household in the very white winter months this season.  Kids usually love the taste without realizing they are eating something wholesome, and adults can’t get enough of this filling soup.

Push the snow aside and pull up a bowl of delicious hot potato soup that only takes about 30 to 45 minutes to cook and can feed up to eight people.

What you will need:

  • 8-9 medium potatoes
  • 1 ¾ cup of milk (whole milk preferably)
  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 1 ½ tablespoons of grated cheddar cheese (if desired)
  • ¼ teaspoon of celery salt
  • ½ teaspoon of white pepper (black pepper may be used, but it will alter the coloring slightly)
  • 1 teaspoon of chopped parsley (not dried)
  • 2 stalks of small chopped celery
  • 1  garlic clove finely chopped
  • 1 medium onion chopped in small pieces (for a sweeter taster rather than savory use a grated carrot)

How to prepare:

Dice the potatoes and place them in a large pot.  Add a small amount of water just to cover the potatoes and cook until the potatoes are soft.  Be sure to not let them stick to the bottom of the pot.  When the potatoes are soft, drain out half the water.

Sauté the onions and celery in butter and add the celery salt, white pepper, garlic and salt.  Next, slowly add in the milk while you keep stirring lightly.  Do not let the mixture burn or sit idle for too long.

Mash half of the potato mixture and add the sauté into the pot with the mashed potatoes.  Leave the other half of the potatoes unmashed – they should be cut into small pieces and will make a nice hearty but smooth soup.  Add celery and keep the mixture moving.

Add the cheddar cheese slowly and keep stirring.  Reduce the heat and let simmer until the cheese is completely melted and the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Garnish the top with the chopped parsley and serve.

*Quick note: If your soup is too thin, add a bit of flour to thicken it. If your soup is too thick, add a bit more milk as needed to thin out.  By mashing only half the potatoes you should have an evenly smooth but thick soup.  If you mash all of the potatoes you will have to add more milk, as the soup will thicken.

Warm your family’s hands and stomach with this hot, tasty potato delight by staying tucked inside and safe from the weather.

A Recipe to Stay in For is an economical alternative to Food For Thought, a NEast restaurant review column written by Donna Ward that runs every other Thursday on NEastPhilly.com. See all of Donna’s reviews here. Read other NEastPhilly columns here.

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