Loaded Potato Soup

My husband and I wanted to visit some friends of ours who recently had a baby. I know meeting up with friends that have a family is harder than it is for just the two of us... and add a baby into the mix and it becomes even harder still. So I thought we could save them some trouble and bring dinner and hang out at their house! I wanted to try this potato soup recipe I found, and thought it would be perfect for these cold winter days we have been having recently. I was right! The soup was delicious and everyone enjoyed it!

Modified from mamalovesfood.com

Ingredients:
- 5lbs Russet Potatoes, washed but NOT peeled. Diced into 1/2 inch(ish) cubes
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 10 cloves of garlic (you can use whole, crushed, or minced)
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 8 oz cream cheese (I used 8oz lowfat)
- 1 TBS seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning
(I didn't have either seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning, so I made my own mixture of: marjoram + paprika + dried parsley + chili + cumin + salt, all to taste but about a table spoon of each spice and a good amount of salt)

Garnishes:
- Crumbled bacon
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Clive

Directions:
- Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning and chicken stock to slow cooker.
- Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.
- Remove and puree the garlic cloves (if you used whole cloves) and cream cheese along with 1/2 to 1/3rd of the soup, and then reintroduce to the remainder in the crock pot.
- Add any additional seasonings to taste. Stir every 10-15 minutes until soup is well blended.
- Top with your choice of garnishes & serve!

Yields about 10-12 servings.



Cooking in the Crockpot and almost ready to eat soon! (made our home smell delicious all night!)

I wasn't able to take a picture of out soup in their bowls, we all ate them so fast! But here is a picture (with some left over toppings) of the soup in it's "left overs container" :) There wasn't really that much left after 4 adults and a child got through with it! YUMMM!

Red Potatoes with Dill Sauce

(by cravingsandravings.blogspot.com)
Ingredients
3 pounds red potatoes
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon garlic powder, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried dill weed, or to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
2 teaspoons sea salt for cooking potatoes

Directions
Wash potatoes and cut away any bad spots on them. Slice into wedges or cut into large cubes. Rinse well after cutting.

Cover potatoes with cold water and add salt. Bring to a boil and cook for about 12 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork.

While potatoes are cooking, melt butter or margarine in the microwave and add seasonings. Mix well, let sit for a few minutes and taste. Adjust seasonings as desired. I don't add any salt until after I mix the butter with the potatoes and taste. The potatoes will absorb salt while cooking, so keep that in mind!

When potatoes are done, drain and set back over the turned off burner for a minute. That will let them dry out as remaining water cooks off. Add butter mixture, mix gently, taste and adjust as needed. There is no going wrong with this dish -- add more butter if you want it, add more pepper. Serve immediately!

Leftovers, if there are any, are wonderful browned and scrambled with eggs.

Potato Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:
4 potatoes, approx. 2 lb., peeled and cut in chunks
2 1/2 cups milk
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 cups cooked turkey or chicken, cubed
1 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
2 tbsp grated Parmesan

Directions:
In saucepan of boiling salted water, cook potatoes, covered, for 15 minutes or until tender; drain and mash with 1/2 cup milk, 1 tbsp butter and half each of the salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, in saucepan, melt remaining butter over medium heat; cook onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until softened. Add flour; cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
Gradually whisk in remaining milk, salt and pepper, mustard, lemon juice and thyme; cook, whisking often, for 10 minutes or until thickened.
Add turkey and vegetables; cook for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Pour into 8-in. casserole dish. Spread potatoes over top; sprinkle with Parmesan. Broil for 2 minutes or until golden.


I made this and it was a great alternative to pastry on the pot pie; It made it more of a Sheppard's pie really. I can't find the picture I took of it, but it was really good and worth making! My Husband LOVED it too!

Seasoned Chopped Potatoes

If you read my last post, about Microwave Potatoes, then you know that not every potato adventure of mine is successful. Actually, before this blog, I have had several unfortunate encounters with potatoes. I don't know. They are one of many weaknesses for me! But boy, I love them! So I keep trying.
Luckily, here is a winner recipe! I just made up the recipe so I am pretty proud, and the chopped potato part? It was me trying to fix the whole "under-cooked /over-cooked" thing.

What are your favorite potato recipes?

Ingredients:
6 small potatoes
olive oil
minced garlic
rosemary leaves
salt
ground pepper
thyme leaves

Directions:

Scrub potatoes under running water and then poke holes using a fork (about 7 times in each). Chop potatoes into bite sized cubes.

In a large bowl, put potatoes in and then add the ingredients (olive oil, minced garlic, rosemary leaves, salt, ground pepper, and thyme leaves). Sorry there are no measurements on this one... they are all "season to taste" things, so sprinkle on as much (or as little) as you want of all! Then, stir till evenly coated on all potatoes.

Place on a cooking sheet. I would cover it in foil for easy clean up (but I forgot to when I made it! oops!).
Cook at 350 for 45 - 60 min.


I served our meal with fresh baked baguette bread (drizzled with balsamic vinegar), broccoli, and cooked chicken tenderloins. OH! and some Cosmopolitans :) It was a fun meal! And tasty!

Try this: Sweet potato fries

Fries are great! But fries that are healthy for you and taste amazing?!?!? SIGN ME UP!!!!! I have found such a combo in All Natural Alexia Sweet Potato Julienne Fries from All Natural Alexia.


Picture from: http://www.iateapie.net/images/brands/alexiasweetfries.jpg

They make tons of products, even variations of sweet potatoes, and although I have not tried them, I would be more than willing to because my experience has been THAT GOOD!
Let me tell you about them :)
The fries come in a resealable freezer safe bag so storage is easy easy. When you want your fries, you just heat the oven and pop them in! And when they are crispy enough for you, DONE!!!!!!!! I even put foil in the bottom of the pan to make clean up that much easier.
The fries them selves are crispy on the outside and sweet and soft on the inside. They are Great as a side to any meal! AND they are all natural, full of Vitamin A, and have a good amount of fiber!

There is also a $1 off coupon on their site! So print that off, and try some! I hope you are as happy with them as I have been! yum yum yum! (I think I will make some with dinner tonight!!)

Microwave Potatoes

Last night, I wanted to make some baked potatoes... but those take FOREVER in the oven. And regardless of my husband getting home so late, I was MAKING baked potatoes! I had a mission!

So began the microwave tests!

I did a little web research and found one that said cook for 5 min, turn over, then cook for 5 more min.... FAIL. The potato was hard, and wrinkly... it looked like a moon rock, and was just as tough! I wish I took a picture because it was so weird!

So, maybe my microwave is too powerful, I don't know, it's the apartment's microwave. But THIS is what I found works:

Ingredients:
2 potatoes
a fork (for poking holes)
olive oil
salt
pepper
shredded cheese, butter, or any toppings you want heated up on potatoes.

Directions:
Scrub the potatoes under running water. Then poke holes all over into the potatoes using the fork.
Rub potatoes with olive oil.
Place potatoes on a microwave safe plate. Lightly salt and pepper the potatoes.
Cook in microwave (on HIGH) for 2 min and 30 sec.
Take out and turn the potatoes over, salt and pepper if needed.
Cook for another 2 min and 30 sec (on HIGH).
Take out, and cut down center of potatoes, use fork to fluff up (if needed).
Put cheese (or other toppings) in the openings and heat up for 30 sec in microwave (or until cheese melts).
And SERVE!


Play around with your microwave and get to know the intensity of it. You may find your own secret microwave potato recipe!

Share with me your experiences!!!!!!