Cheddar-Potato Soup



I just LOVE this beautiful fall weather.  Annalyn & I have been enjoying morning walks and even some occasional jogging (which might I add, is really hard to do with a jogging stroller!  To all you jogging mamas out there - I now have even more respect for you!).  Something about the cool weather seems to motivate me.  Maybe because fall is my absolute favorite time of year.



As always, my cooking is influenced by the season, and this beautiful preview of fall weather has me craving soup.  Specifically, the warm-soup-belly-feeling kind of soup.  For Michael & I, this is that soup.  The original recipe comes from Food Network's Robin Miller, and uses leftover mashed potatoes (so keep this in mind in a few months after those holiday feasts!).  This time, I actually used the leftover potato flesh from my garlic potato skins recipe.  I love coordinating recipes so that one leads into the next (helps so much with menu planning!).

Cheddar-Potato Soup

Ingredients:

- 2 t. olive oil

- 1 c. diced celery

- 1 c. diced onion

- 6 c. chicken stock

- 2 c. mashed potatoes

- 1/4 c. non-fat Greek yogurt**

- 2 T. margarine (my favorite is this one)**

- 8 oz. reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese

- 1 t. salt

- 1/2 t. ground white pepper

- 1 t. dry mustard

- 1/4 c. hot sauce, optional

- 4 chopped green onions, for garnish

**omit these ingredients if you are using leftover mashed potatoes instead of just plain mashed potato flesh.

Directions:

1.  Add oil to a large pot set over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they start to soften.



2.  Add stock and mashed potatoes (if using plain potato flesh, also add yogurt and margarine)  and bring to a simmer.



3.  Using a hand blender or regular blender, puree soup until smooth (when using a regular blender, work in batches to prevent messy cleanups!).

4.  Add Cheddar, salt, white pepper, dry mustard and hot sauce. Stir to combine and allow the cheese to melt.  Garnish with chopped green onions. 

Michael usually adds more hot sauce

I like just enough to make it belly-warming

printable recipe