Potato Soup

At the end of summer, when I have cleared the garden of all vegetables, Rugby loves to go back over it and search for more. It's a treasure hunt to him. And usually he finds things I missed...mostly carrots and potatoes. I must get lazy when I'm digging. A couple years ago, he brought in his bounty and asked if he could make potato soup for supper. I helped him put together a very basic recipe and then tweak it with all the veggies he had. That soup had carrots, corn, and green beans in addition to the potatoes. I'll share the basic recipe with you and you can add any other veggies that you like. Enjoy!

Potato Soup

2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup flour
7 cups milk (we use 1%)
4 large baking potatoes, baked, peeled and cubed (I have already peeled, cubed and boiled before adding to the soup and that works fine, too!)
4 green onions, sliced (I use them if I have them)
12 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled (The kids like more, but really...who doesn't like more bacon?!)
1 1/4 cup shredded cheddar
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2-3/4 tsp celery seed (we like it, but ok to skip if you don't)

Melt butter in your stock pot. Stir in flour; heat and stir until smooth. GRADUALLY add the milk, stirring constantly until thickened. (It won't thicken very well if you add the milk too fast.) Add potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, stirring until cheese is melted. Serve immediately. Makes about 2 1/2 quarts.

Kelly's Potatoes

Here's a couple conversations with my boys a couple weeks ago:

On Saturday:

Me: Riley, what should we have for lunch today?

Riley: KELLY'S POTATOES!!

Me: Um, ok, I'll have to see if I can find the recipe she used, k?

Riley: Yea, just make um!

(I did manage to find the recipe, Riley apparently loved them!)

On Monday: (while I was menu planning)

Me: What should we have for dinners this week?

Rugby: Meat and potatoes with corn.

Me: Ok, can do, how about we do that Tuesday?

Rugby: Ok

Me: Riley, you want to pick a night?

Riley: Kelly's potatoes!!

Me: You liked them, huh? Alrighty! We'll do them Wednesday.

Riley: NO! Mom, it's Taco Wednesday. (I promised the kids tacos every Wednesday until wrestling season is over)

Me: OH! I forgot, Thursday then.

Riley: Thanks, Mom!

So, if they're that good, I GOTTA post the recipe!

8 potatoes, peeled and sliced
3 cups milk
4 tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (yes, I use it all when I make these)
1 cup chopped onion
chopped ham (optional)
Shredded cheddar cheese

Grease a 9x13 pan. In a single layer, spread out four potatoes worth of slices. Add the ham if you are adding it.


In a saucepan, bring to a boil: milk, flour, salt, garlic powder, & cayenne. Stir until thickened. Add the onion.
Pour 1 1/2 cups of this mixture evenly over the potatoes. Add another layer of potatoes over this and spread the remaining 1 1/2 cups of sauce over the potatoes.

Cover and bake at 350 for an hour. Remove cover and sprinkle generously with cheese and place back in the oven to melt the cheese. Enjoy!