{cheesey ham & potato soup}

oodness gracious this soup was better than I thought it was going to be!  I have been trying to come up with meals that I could make with ingredients that I already have at home so I don’t have to spend extra money going grocery shopping.  The internet is a wonderful place for great meal ideas.   I had a ham, potatoes, onions, celery, milk, and cheese.  And this recipe from food.com came to my rescue.  Let me tell you, I haven’t had this much oohing and awing and “mmm, mmm, this is so good!” at the table in a long time.  I made the soup twice in a seven day period!  I would definitely recommend this wonderful winter meal to warm you and your table guests up.

Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup

Serves: 4-6

Time: approx. 30-40 min {I am bad at keeping track of how long it takes me, but this is my best guess}

What you need:

3 1/2 cupspotatoes , peeled and diced {I keep mine with the peel}
1/3 cup celery, diced
1/3 cuponion, finely chopped
1 -2 cup Afton Field Farm ham, diced and cooked
3 1/4 cupswater

2 tablespoonschicken bouillon granules {instead of the water and bouillon granules, I used what chicken, beef, and vegetable stock I had on hand}

1/2 teaspoonsalt {to taste}
1 teaspoon pepper

5 tablespoons butter

5 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

2 cups cheddar {or I used pepper jack the second time I made this soup} cheese, shredded

{additional ingredients you could add: red chili pepper flakes, bacon, carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, garlic, different cheeses, and any other veggie or herb you might have on hand}

What you do:

-Combine potatoes, celery, onion, ham, and water {or chicken/beef/vegetable stock} in stockpot and bring to boil.

-Then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender.

-Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt, and pepper. {I put in the stock and salt & pepper all in step 1}

-In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour and cook stirring constantly until thick.

-Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form and all milk is added. Continue to stir until thick {4-5 minutes- it took me longer.  This takes the most time and seems like it will never thicken, but like all cream sauces, it does and is vital to be patient with it}

-Add in cheese and stir until melted.

-Stir the cheese mixture into the stockpot and cook until heated through. {I mashed some of the potatoes up for  thickness. It gets thicker as it cools and next day}

I tasted the soup and thought it could use a little spice, so I put red chile pepper flakes in just before serving.  I put about 2 Tbs. in.  It was just the right amount, even when you could taste the spice more the next day.

Creamy soup never looks as good on camera as it does in real life- that is my only disappointment with this cheesy ham and potato soup ;)

Advertisement